Calvin College Food Shed Study

Abstract | Procedures | Key to Data | Data | Graphs

Abstract

A foodshed, similar to a watershed, traces the flow of food from its origin to its final destination, often crossing state boundaries and international borders. The Calvin Food Service inventory lists provided data on Calvin's foodshed. This data was categorized by type of food, quantity of each type by unit and cost, and company of origin. This study provided insights into the difficulty of tracing food back to its source. Names of companies hinted at the origins of food but further research is needed. The study provided the basis for further study in understanding of Calvin's postion in both the global and local economy that may aid in asking questions about the college's decisions in regard to feeding it's students and staff while trying to be an environmentally responsible institution.

Procedures

1. Raw Data Collection

The raw data was collected from computer printouts of the actual food purchased by Calvin College from Gordon Foods, Van Eerden Co. and Bareman's Dairy. The month used for this stud, was September 1997. The printouts for Gordon Foods and Van Eerden Co. were totals for the entire month, while Bareman's Dairy was for one week. As such, the totals for the purchases from Bareman's was multiplied by 4 in order to equal the totals for the other two companies. Only items that were considered fresh produce, meat and dairy were collected for this part of the study.

2. Raw Data Classification

The raw data was classified by producer, category, type, item description, unit, amount and price.

(See data key)

3. Data Entry

The classified data was entered into Microsoft Excel style spreadsheet. Data was then sorted and totaled. In some cases changes were made to data to ensure better clarity.

• Some units of items were converted to for better clarity. An example of this was in the case of the milk purchased from Bareman's Dairy. In some cases the milk was bought in 5 gallon bags, 1 gallon containers, 2 gallon containers, pints and 2 pints. The decision was made to convert the units to 5 gallons or portions there off.
• In some cases exact same items from same producers were listed more than once. If items were found to have same purchase price they were merged together, if not, they were left as separate items.

4. Graphing Results

Pie style graphs were created for top ten producer by dollars bought, top 5 producers per category and proportion of each category by dollars.

Key To Data

Producer: company that produced the item

Category: classification of fresh produce, meat and dairy

pr: fresh produce

me: meats

da: dairy

Type: type of food purchased

Dairy	Meats	Produce
mi: milk	be: beef	fr: fruits
ch: cheese	eg: eggs	ve: vegetables
yo: yogurt	pk: pork
ic: ice cream	po: poultry
cc: cottage cheese	pm: processed
	sf: seafood

Item: description of food

Unit: the measure of unit purchased

5 gal: 5 gallon

bu: bushel

cs: case

in: individual count

lb: pounds

pt: pint

qt: quart

Amount: number of units purchased

Price: total price of units purchased of particular item

DATA

Producer	cat	type	Item	Unit	Amount	Price
amid	da					#REF!
apline-lace	da	mi	skim	5 gal	555.3	5450.72
aztec	da	mi	2% milk	5 gal	505.6	5163.64
bareman's	da	po	chix-brst	cs	170	5086.07
bareman's	da	eg	liq-whole-eggs	cs	168	3289.44
bareman's	da	po	chix-nuggets	cs	84	3084.48
bareman's	da	po	chix breasts	cs	95	2838
bareman's	da	ch	mozz	cs	35	2703.09
bareman's	da	be	inside-rounds	cs	27	2483.9
bareman's	da	mi	choc. 1%s.p.	5 gal	181	2393.56
bareman's	da	eg	eggs	cs	116	2271.28
bareman's	da	mi	chocolate	5 gal	188.55	2066.52
bareman's	da	ch	colby	cs	25	1730.51
bareman's	da	be	ground-beef	cs	45	1625
bareman's	da	po	chix-fajita-strips	cs	43	1557.03
beatrice	da	po	chix-nuggets	cs	41	1505.52
bil-mar	da	po	brst-filet	cs	79	1177.1
bil-mar	da	ch	swiss	cs	12	1171.95
bil-mar	da	ch	colby-jack	cs	13	1157.56
bil-mar	da	be	cubes	cs	39	1113.06
bil-mar	da	sf	shrimp	cs	21	1047.12
bobevans	da	be	beef	cs	18	952.7
california	da	po	brd-chix-brst	cs	35	924.35
california	da	ch	colby	cs	10	874.54
california	da	sf	chunk-light-tuna	cs	24	858
california	da	ch	american	cs	25	852.55
calumet	da	po	chicken	cs	29	798.66
cbell	da	sf	cod	cs	5	791.25
chadal	da	po	turkey breast	cs	19	743.1
chadal	da	ve	tomatoes	lb	1275	741.55
chicago-meat	da	o	russet	cs	62	704.32
chicago-meat	da	sf	ocean-perch	cs	7	704.27
clearwater	da	ch	colby	lb	415.6	698.68
clearwater	da	ch	swiss	lb	345.5	692.4
countryfresh	da	ve	trimmed lettuce	lb	1470	678.25
dan's-prize	da	be	diced-beef-cubes	cs	22	627.88
dean	da	cc	low fat	5 lb	104	619.84
delux	da	ve	lettuce	lb	1540	613.5
delux	da	ch	moz-provo	cs	16	603.71
deutsch-kase-haus	da	sf	orange-roughy	cs	6	600.18
deutsch-kase-haus	da	po	skinless breast	cs	15	581.75
deutsch-kase-haus	da	yo	yogurt	5 lb	152	532
deutsch-kase-haus	da	sf	shrimp	cs	8	522.72
dfs	da	pm	bratwurst	cs	22	510.84
dole	da	sf	perch	cs	5	503.05
dole	da	pk	ham	cs	10	487.88
dole	da	po	chicken breast	cs	6	483
dole	da	ch	american	cs	14	477.38
emmber	da	ic	6% choc.	.5 gal	288	466.56
excel	me	be	patties	cs	23	464.83
farmer's	me	po	delux-nat-brstfillet	cs	31	461.9
farmer's	me	fr	cantaloupe	in	264	457.8
ferris	me	fr	red del. apples	in	2500	442.8
florida	me	ch	co-jack	lb	255.5	442.23
frionor	me	be	fingers	cs	15	436.2
goldki	me	be	diced-beef-fingers	cs	15	436.2
goldki	me	ve	mini- carrots	lb	480	423.05
goldki	me	ve	large tomatoes	lb	850	421.4
gorges	me	fr	cantaloupe #1	lb	840	421.4
great-lake-cheese	me	fr	strawberries	pt	324	405.2
great-lake-cheese	me	ve	potatoes	cs	26	401.44
great-lake-cheese	me	be	steak	cs	13	393.77
great-lake-cheese	me	fr	honey dew	in	200	381.25
great-lake-cheese	me	be	fajita-strips	cs	10	365
great-lake-cheese	me	fr	red grapes	lb	361	357.3
great-lake-cheese	me	po	skinless breast	cs	9	351.86
great-lake-cheese	me	fr	yellow banana	lb	1120	343.95
great-lake-cheese	me	fr	honey-dew	in	184	339.55
gualtn	me	ic	4% mi	.5 gal	216	339.12
hamilton	me	ve	mini- carrots	lb	200	334.3
hamilton	me	po	chicken	cs	12	330.48
hamilton	me	fr	apples	in	2750	329
heerenbros	me	cr	cream-cheese	cs	8	326.65
hoekstra	me	sf	clam-strips	cs	10	311.7
hoekstra	me	fr	apples-gold	in	1400	311.15
hoekstra	me	po	turkey	cs	11	302.28
hoekstra	me	po	fryers .25 cut	cs	9	297.49
hoekstra	me	ch	parmesan	cs	5	293.35
hoekstra	me	be	ground-beef-patty	cs	14	282.94
holten	me	be	beef-cubes	cs	9	281.97
holten	me	sf	scrod	cs	5	277.3
hormel	me	ic	ice-cream-sandwich	cs	10	273.5
hormel	me	sf	cod	cs	4	264.56
hormel	me	fr	granny apples	in	990	258.45
iceland	me	po	chix-brst	cs	12	256.72
iceland	me	po	smoked turkey	cs	6	255.57
iceland	me	fr	raisins	lb	240	244.72
idaho	me	ch	swiss	cs	7	239.72
idaho	me	pk	boneless	cs	5	238.88
idaho	me	ch	swiss	cs	7	238.84
import	me	fr	oranges	in	2034	234.85
international	me	sf	cod	cs	2	230.04
johnsonville	me	ve	broc-wokly	lb	216	215.5
johnsonville	me	fr	banana turning	lb	680	211.6
johnsonville	me	fr	granny apples	in	1000	206.25
johnsonville	me	pk	diced	cs	9	202.5
johnsonville	me	ve	mixed greens	lb	72	200.76
jordans	me	po	chix-nuggets	cs	6	197.64
jordans	me	pk	boneless	cs	4	197.27
kent	me	be	patty	cs	13	195.8
kent	me	ve	cauliflower	cs	16	193
kent	me	ch	provo	cs	3	191.8
kent	me	sf	scrod-pollock	cs	5	191.56
kent	me	be	beef-cabob-cubes	cs	6	187.98
kent	me	fr	banana ripe	lb	600	185.2
kent	me	fr	red plums	cs	8	184.4
lamb-weston	me	po	turkey-bacon	lb	101.2	184.32
limson	me	fr	pears	cs	10	183.3
limson	me	pm	bologna	cs	14	182.61
limson	me	fr	whl-mandarin-oranges	cs	6	182.61
limson	me	sf	shrimp	cs	1	178.85
markon	me	ve	broc-wokly	lb	180	176.1
markon	me	pm	bratwurst	cs	10	175
miceli	me	fr	strawberries	cs	12	172.7
michigan	me	pk	ham	cs	4	170.87
michigan	me	ve	kale	in	504	163.95
michigan	me	pk	chops	cs	6	162.24
michigan	me	pk	pork-chops	cs	6	162.24
michigan	me	be	ground-beef-patty	cs	13	160.81
michigan	me	ch	monterey	cs	8	157.2
modern	me	ve	peppers green	cs	13	155.9
modern	me	po	chix	cs	6	150.78
mullins	me	mi	homogenized	5 gal	10	150.4
mullins	me	pm	pepperoni	cs	3	149.04
nichirei	me	fr	watermelon	lb	576	147.25
nichirei	me	ve	lettuce leaf	in	336	146.4
norfisk	me	ve	cauliflower #1	in	108	146.4
ok	me	ve	lettuce shred	cs	13	145.52
oldeurope	me	ch	cheddar	cs	4	145.33
orval	me	ve	lg. mushroom	lb	90	144.9
orval	me	be	ground pattie	cs	8	142.24
papetti's	me	fr	red plum	cs	6	140.6
papetti's	me	sf	shrimp	cs	2	139.32
pearson	me	ch	colby	lb	85.9	138.33
pierre	me	pm	salami	cs	5	137.92
quik-to-fix	me	pm	salami	cs	5	136.91
quincy	me	po	skinless brest	cs	4	136.08
quincy	me	be	meatballs	cs	10	135.64
quincy	me	pk	diced-pork	cs	6	135
quincy	me	fr	grapes red	lb	133	133.8
quincy	me	pm	pastrami	cs	5	132.49
quincy	me	fr	apple granny	cs	4	129.6
quincy	me	fr	oranges	in	880	127.55
quincy	me	po	brd-chix-patty	cs	6	125.82
quincy	me	po	brd-chix-brst	cs	4	124.68
quincy	me	ch	muenster	lb	73.6	124.41
quincy	me	ch	muenster	cs	2	124.41
quincy	me	ve	whole potato	lb	210	123.55
raefor	me	pk	ground-pork	cs	4	120.8
raefor	me	ve	tomatoes cher	cs	8	119.8
raefor	me	ch	mozz-provo	cs	4	115.94
redcut	me	sf	clams	cs	2	115.78
redcut	me	ch	mozzarella	cs	3	111.81
redcut	me	po	fryers	cs	3	111
redcut	me	ve	green peppers	in	440	109.4
redcut	me	pm	meatballs	cs	8	108
redcut	me	fr	apples red del	cs	4	104
redi-serve	me	pm	polish-sausage	cs	6	103.02
redi-serve	me	pm	polish-sausage	cs	6	103.02
rocky	me	ch	monterey-jack	lb	54.2	100.35
royalmeats	me	be	veal-patty	cs	7	97.51
royalmeats	me	fr	apples	in	750	97.5
royalmeats	me	ve	potato rednw	lb	400	96.05
royalmeats	me	sf	clam-strips	cs	3	93.51
royalmeats	me	ve	mushroom slic	lb	70	89.65
royalmeats	me	pm	polish sausage	cs	5	88.75
schreiber	me	ve	celery	cs	7	88.43
schreiber	me	pk	hog-sausage-patty	cs	4	85.44
schreiber	me	fr	w-melon cuts	lb	306	82.75
schreiber	me	pm	italian-sausage	cs	5	80.45
schreiber	me	pm	italian-sausage	cs	5	80.45
schreiber	pr	ve	leaf lettuce	in	192	80.4
sea-watch	pr	pk	ham	cs	2	78.84
sea-watch	pr	po	chicken	cs	3	77.58
sea-watch	pr	ve	tomatoes cher	pt	60	75.75
sea-watch	pr	sf	shrimp-salad	cs	2	75.6
singleton	pr	fr	apples granny	cs	4	75.3
singleton	pr	pm	pastrami	cs	3	75
singleton	pr	ve	red potato	lb	550	74.65
singleton	pr	ch	mozz	cs	2	74.64
southern	pr	ve	baker potato	in	720	71.34
southern	pr	po	turkey-pastrami	lb	38	70.9
southern	pr	be	ground-beef-patty	cs	3	70.83
southern	pr	ve	baker potato	in	700	70
southern	pr	po	cornedbeef	cs	1	69.92
southern	pr	pk	bacon	cs	2	69.6
southern	pr	fr	oranges	cs	2	68.28
southern	pr	ch	mozzarella	cs	2	68.2
southern	pr	be	franks	cs	5	67.75
southwest	pr	ve	carrot sticks	cs	5	66.8
southwest	pr	pm	all meat wiener	cs	5	66.25
souwes	pr	pk	sausage-patty	cs	4	65.2
souwes	pr	pm	kielbasa	cs	4	65.16
split	pr	po	chix-nuggets	cs	3	64.35
split	pr	sf	crab	cs	1	63.83
split	pr	ve	lettuce- roma	in	120	62.4
split	pr	ve	potato baker	in	600	61.75
split	pr	pk	chop	cs	2	60.32
split	pr	ch	monterey	cs	3	58.9
split	pr	sf	lobster	cs	2	58.8
split	pr	pk	canada bacon	cs	1	58.69
split	pr	ve	colossal onion	lb	300	56.1
split	pr	yo	plain	5 lb	16	56
sterling	pr	po	chicken	cs	2	55.08
sterling	pr	pm	pepperoni	cs	1	52.92
sterling	pr	fr	pears	in	180	52.9
sterling	pr	ve	cauliflower	in	48	52.8
sterling	pr	fr	apples	cs	2	52.2
sterling	pr	ve	colossal onion	lb	300	51.45
swift-eckridge	pr	fr	lemons	in	108	51.15
tip-top	pr	ch	feta	cs	1	50.68
tip-top	pr	pk	sauasage link	cs	3	50.04
tip-top	pr	ve	diced potatoes	lb	50	47.75
tyson	pr	mi	nestle choc.	5 gal	1.8	46.92
tyson	pr	mi	nestle strw.	5 gal	1.8	46.92
tyson	pr	pm	brats	cs	2	46.44
tyson	pr	sf	cod	cs	1	46.09
tyson	pr	pm	sausage-links	cs	4	46
tyson	pr	ve	zucchini	lb	100	45.5
tyson	pr	ve	spinach	lb	30	44.4
tyson	pr	ve	diced onion	lb	50	44.15
tyson	pr	ve	celery us #1	in	150	42.9
tyson	pr	ve	sunflower seed	lb	50	42.2
tyson	pr	po	smoked turkey	cs	1	42.06
tyson	pr	fr	green grapes	lb	36	40.95
tyson	pr	ch	pepper jack	lb	20	39.2
tyson	pr	ve	kale	in	120	39.05
tyson	pr	ve	yellow squash	lb	60	38.1
washington	pr	ve	cucumbers	in	450	37.75
washington	pr	ve	gr. Cauliflower	in	32	37.55
washington	pr	pk	tenderloin	cs	1	37.36
washington	pr	ve	red peppers	bu	3	37.05
western	pr	ch	swiss	cs	1	36.38
western	pr	ve	leaf lettuce	in	48	34.6
western	pr	pm	pastrami	cs	1	34.11
western	pr	ve	alfalfa sprouts	lb	21	33.55
western	pr	pm	corn-beef	cs	1	33.08
western	pr	ve	carrots bulk	lb	250	31.8
western	pr	fr	pineapple	in	16	31.65
western	pr	ch	feta	cs	1	31.1
western	pr	ch	gouda	cs	1	29.85
western	pr	ve	shred cole slaw	lb	30	29.78
western	pr	ve	red cabbage	lb	60	27.6
western	pr	fr	oranges	cs	1	27.42
western	pr	ve	red onions	lb	20	26.75
western	pr	pm	bologna	cs	2	26.57
western	pr	ve	sno peas	lb	10	26.1
western	pr	ve	garlic chopped	qt	6	26.04
western	pr	ch	havarti	cs	1	25.93
western	pr	ch	havarti	lb	9.7	25.01
western	pr	ve	rom. lettuce	in	48	24.95
western	pr	be	ground-beef-patty	cs	2	24.69
western	pr	ve	red onions	lb	75	24.55
western	pr	ve	med mushroom	lb	20	24.45
western	pr	eg	large-eggs	cs	2	23.76
western	pr	eg	large	cs	2	23.76
western	pr	ve	red peppers	bu	4	23.7
western	pr	ch	ricotta	cs	2	23.52
western	pr	fr	grape fruit	in	80	23.4
western	pr	eg	medium	cs	3	22.77
western	pr	ch	cheddar	cs	1	22.52
western	pr	ve	celery diced	lb	20	22.5
western	pr	ve	ginger-root	cs	2	22.3
western	pr	fr	black plum	in	40	21.35
western	pr	ve	zucchini	lb	40	18.9
western	pr	ve	red cabbage	lb	40	18.8
western	pr	fr	star fruit	in	20	18.35
western	pr	fr	kiwi	in	72	18.32
western	pr	ve	diced onion	lb	20	17.5
western	pr	ve	celery us #1	in	60	17
western	pr	pm	braunschweiger	cs	1	15.55
western	pr	ve	cucumbers	in	180	15.45
western	pr	pm	salami	cs	1	15.42
western	pr	ve	span onions	lb	100	14.5
western	pr	sf	clam-juice	cs	1	13.89
western	pr	ve	red peppers	lb	11	13.85
western	pr	ve	green onion	in	24	12.7
western	pr	be	beef-patty	cs	1	12.02
western	pr	ve	red lettuce	in	24	11.35
western	pr	fr	pineapple	in	3	11.1
western	pr	pm	franks	cs	1	10.48
western	pr	ve	leeks	in	6	10.3
western	pr	ve	green onion	in	48	10.1
whiteford	pr	ve	rom. lettuce	in	24	10.05
whiteford	pr	ve	rom. lettuce	in	12	9.35
whiteford	pr	ve	bulk carrots	lb	50	8.95
whiteford	pr	ve	nappa cabbage	lb	10	8.55
whiteford	pr	ve	cello radish	lb	45	8
wisconsin	pr	ve	acorn squash	lb	40	7.85
wolverine	pr	ve	yellow squash	lb	20	7.6
zivneydairy	pr	ve	cello radish	lb	14	7.05
zivneydairy	pr	ve	parsley	in	12	5.1
		ve	green cabbage	in	3	3.95

Graphs

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