Liberty Dining gets fresh with local vendors, indoor gardens

When Liberty University students eat at the Food Court at Reber-Thomas, they know the produce is fresh.

According to a recent Technomic College & University Consumer Trend Report, freshness is driving student purchasing decisions, with 53 percent willing to pay more for fresh foods. Moreover, 7 out of 10 students will choose foods described as “authentic” or “made from scratch”.

To promote sustainability, Liberty Dining Services by Sodexo installed an urban farming unit inside the main dining hall, the Food Court at Reber-Thomas. This unit uses a state-of-the-art water filtration system and environmental lighting to help grow the seeds for herbs and vegetables.

In addition to growing local, Liberty Dining has partnered with Cavalier Produce sourcing local products that are used at residential and retail locations around campus.

Located in Louisa, Va., Cavalier is a retailer that works with premium shippers and growers from across the country to provide high quality fruits and vegetables.

Most growers are in Central and Southeast Virginia, within a 100-mile radius of Cavalier’s warehouse.

Each year, Cavalier searches for new partnerships with growers across the region while building on already established ones such as Fruit Hill Orchid in Palmyra, Va., located just outside Charlottesville.

Fruit Hill Orchid was established in 1929 and is run by Barbara Lintecum and her family.

“It’s all about family,” she said. “Our children are a big part of what we do and are now fifth generation apple growers.”

Lintecum said investing in local produce is important because consumers know where their products are coming from, as well as promoting the local economy of the region.

“If you’re buying non-local, you have no idea where that fruit was actually picked and most importantly, when it was picked,” she said. “Any time you have a perishable item that is picked and travels a great distance to the store, it may look good, but you taste it and you can tell that something is not quite right. The taste is just not there, and the texture is off.”

Liberty has more than 2,000 pounds of produce delivered to the university every day during the school year and. when apples are in season, many of those boxes are labeled “Fruit Hill Orchid”.

“It means a lot that Sodexo would work with a company like Cavalier that is concerned about sourcing things that are locally produced and fresh,” Lintecum said.