For new ideas on how to feed U.S. Army soldiers, celebrity chef Robert Irvine looked to Columbia University and Vicki Dunn, assistant vice president of Columbia Dining.
Why? Because students and young soldiers are the same age with the same tastes so Irvine brought Army officials to Columbia to see how Dunn does it while keeping per-meal costs contained.
When Dunn came to Columbia in 2007, there were about 1,500 or 2,000 people on the meal plan. Many students were dropping meal plans, so Dunn changed the entire approach to create a culinary mecca and retrained her staff with restaurant-caliber skills.
“The food needs to be fresh. It can't be cooked hours before,” she said, emphasizing that she buys from sustainable and local sources.
“Last semester we had 7,611 students on meal plans,” Dunn said.
Watch the full segment on CBS Saturday Morning.
