Cultivating the long-term well-being
of all people and the planet—
one student, one meal at a time.
Our Mission
The Menus of Change University Research Collaborative (MCURC), —co-founded and led by The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), Stanford Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE) , and Stanford Prevention Research Center—is a global network of forward-thinking colleges and university scholars, foodservice leaders, executive chefs, students, and administrators, accelerating progress toward healthier, more sustainable, and delicious foods using evidence.
The MCURC leverages the unique position of universities to advance these types of life-long food choices among students—many of whom will be influencers who can impact the world’s food systems.
The Initiative
The Menus of Change University Research Collaborative (MCURC) is a global network of colleges and universities using campus dining halls as living laboratories for behavior change. We advance a groundbreaking research pipeline focused on plant-forward diets, food waste reduction, and the drivers of consumer food choices. We also co-create educational resources related to accelerating the implementation of the Menus of Change Principles of Healthy, Sustainable Menus across the foodservice industry.
The Collaborative is an extension of Menus of Change®: The Business of Healthy, Sustainable, Delicious Food Choices, a groundbreaking initiative from The Culinary Institute of America and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Menus of Change works to realize a long-term, practical vision integrating optimal nutrition and public health, environmental stewardship and restoration, and social responsibility concerns within the foodservice industry and the culinary profession.
