Fountains

University of Vermont | Chittenden County

Today we break down the catalog for food safety in education communities; with primary attention to consultations from private standard developing organizations and federal agencies charged with food safety.  We do so with sensitivity to animals and plants and sustainability of the global food supply chain.   Many schools are the communal cafeterias for the communities that own and operate them and run at commercial scale.

We prepare responses to public consultations released by standards developing organizations which, in many cases, have significant conformance enterprises.  Core titles are published by the ANSI accredited organizations listed below:

3-A Sanitary Standards

Catalog

ASHRAE International

The ASHRAE catalog is the most cross-cutting and fastest moving catalog in the land.   If you claim ownership of the United States energy domain you pretty much capture everything related campus safety and sustainability.  Best to deal with it on a day-by-day basis as we usually do according to daily topics shown on our CALENDAR.

Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers

National Electrical Safety Code   (Our particular interest lies in the safety and reliability of off-campus agricultural and research facilities that receive power from regulated utilities)

Kitchen Safety and Security System for Children

TupperwareEarth: Bringing Intelligent User Assistance to the “Internet of Kitchen Things”

Designing an IoT based Kitchen Monitoring and Automation System for Gas and Fire Detection

Re-Inventing the Food Supply Chain with IoT: A Data-Driven Solution to Reduce Food Loss

International Code Council

Commercial Kitchens

International Building Code Assembly Group A-2

International Building Code Group U Section 312 Agricultural Buildings

International Building Code Moderate Hazard Factory Industrial Group F-1 (Food Processing)

Who Gets Rich From School Lunch

National Fire Protection Association

Kitchen Wiring

National Electrical Code Article 210 (Branch Circuits)

National Electrical Code Article 547 (Agricultural Buildings)

Standard for the Installation of Air-Conditioning and Ventilating Systems

Public Input Report for the 2024 Revision

Standard for Ventilation Control and Fire Protection of Commercial Cooking Operations

Public Input Report for the 2024 Revision

NSF International

Food Equipment

Commercial Warewashing Equipment

Commercial Refrigerators and Freezers

Commercial Cooking, Rethermalization and Powered Hot Food Holding and Transport Equipment

Commercial Powered Food Preparation Equipment

US Federal Government:

US Department of Agriculture

Food & Drug Administration (HACCP)

State Governments:

Lorem ipsum @StandardsState

Global:

International Organization for Standardization

International Electrotechnical Commission

Codex Alimentarius

Food safety and sustainability standards populate are of the largest domains we track so if we need a break0-out session, let’s do it.  Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.

University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment

More

Standards supporting vertical farming

STANDARDS SUPPORT SOPHISTICATED FARMING METHODS THAT BRING PRODUCE TO YOUR TABLE

US Food & Drug Administration: Food Facility Registration Statistics (as  of January 11, 2021)

National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry

The U.S. Land-Grant University System: An Overview

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers Standards Development

The origin of the Land grant act of 1862 

International Electrotechnical Commission: Keeping food safe from farm to plate

 Codex Alimentarius

Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education: Dining Services Programs

Science and Our Food Supply: A Teacher’s Guide for High School Classrooms

Food Code 2017

Southern Methodist University | Dallas County

All the work we do intervening in technical standards setting to make educational settlements safer, simpler, lower-cost and longer-lasting does not keep pace with the growth rate of the largest non-residential building construction market in the United States which is presently challenged by international demand; but perhaps not for long.

Resource Guide

What do REITs actually build on campus?

• Most university-linked REIT activity is in student housing.

• Publicly traded REITs (e.g., American Campus Communities, EdR before acquisition) invest heavily in dormitories, apartments, and mixed-use retail.

• They typically do not build core academic facilities (labs, classrooms) or administrative buildings.

Why do universities use REITs?

• To outsource capital costs. Universities avoid debt on their balance sheets.

• REITs finance, build, and sometimes operate student housing under long-term ground leases or Public-Private Partnerships (P3s).

• Universities see this as a way to expand housing quickly without issuing bonds.

While REITs don’t “overbuild” in the academic sense, they can fuel:

• Overcapacity in student housing if enrollment projections are wrong or decline.

• Pressure to approve new beds even as demand flattens or drops.

• Long-term financial obligations (e.g., guaranteed occupancy rates in P3 contracts) that burden universities if enrollment falls.

• Some universities guaranteed minimum occupancy in REIT partnerships. If enrollment dipped, they had to subsidize empty rooms.

Most overbuilding in core facilities—labs, classrooms, administrative space—has been driven by:

• Ambitious master plans

• Competition for prestige

• Donor-driven construction

• Misaligned enrollment forecasts
  

We leave the topic of “Football Field Syndrome” for another day.

This Washington D.C. – based non-profit’s founding originated at the University of Michigan in the 1920’s and has long since expanded affiliates in several North American regions and states.  It maintains one of the most active bibliography on space utilization, curated here to support today’s colloquium.

How Understanding Campus Utilization Rates Can Reduce Your Institution’s Carbon Footprint

“The State of Facilities in Higher Education: Space, Spending, & Staff” (June 2024)
Discusses the tension between campus building stock and declining enrollment, examining the ratio of space-to-enrollment growth, and exploring how institutions are reducing footprint amid surplus space

“Changing the Facilities Backlog Conversation in Higher Education” (July/August 2021)
Covers how colleges manage over 6 billion sq ft of campus space, a deferred maintenance backlog of $112 billion, and strategies (“Catch Up” & “Keep Up”) for dealing with excess and aging space

“Gordian Partners with APPA to Estimate Higher Education Infrastructure Backlog Need” (July 2021)
Details the count of 6.2 billion sq ft in 210,000 buildings, average age nearing 50 years, and current replacement value exceeding $2 trillion—highlighting the need to reassess and reduce physical footprint

“Abstract: Space Planning and Administration” (Body of Knowledge, ~2019)
Describes how some universities manage 20 million+ sq ft on a single site, emphasizing processes to inventory, classify, and efficiently use space, noting underutilized spaces like athletic fields (“football field syndrome”)

“The State of Facilities in Higher Education: Facilities Manager Magazine” (March/April 2025)
While full access is member‑only, the issue’s focus (“Elevating Student Experiences”) includes featured articles on repurposing and rightsizing spaces in response to shifting enrollment.

“Institutional Success” (APPA Thought Leaders Series, circa 2014)
Outlines how reducing campus square footage—such as demolishing 120,000 sq ft of trailers and replacing with 175,000 sq ft centralized facility—can save ~$1.6 M annual maintenance

Standards Michigan About