Bon Appétit Management Company

The Lunar New Year festive season is not only about vibrant lanterns and parades, but it is also a time to enjoy a feast of carefully chosen foods that promise good fortune for the coming year. Below we dive into the symbolism behind ten of Lunar New Year’s luckiest foods, each carrying hope to deliciously usher in the blessings of the new year. 

Lunar New Year, a major holiday in China, South Korea, Vietnam, and other countries across the world, is an annual 15-day festival celebrating the arrival of spring and the beginning of the lunisolar calendar. Also referred to as Chinese New Year, Spring Festival, and other country-specific titles, at Bon Appétit we recognize the festival is honored by various cultures — each with their own rituals, foods, histories, and nuances — and use the term Lunar New Year to be inclusive of all who observe this rich holiday.  

As we mark the beginning of Black History Month, it is our pleasure to unveil Bon Appétit Management Company’s Amplifying Black Culinarians digital cookbook — a vibrant collection of recipes from our talented Black chefs, cooks, and team members. 

As winter’s chill settles in, cooks often turn to storage crops, including a vibrant array of hardy winter squash, each with its own special flavor profile and gastronomic potential. From the robust and well-known butternut to the delicately sweet acorn, ornamental turban squash, and velvety texture and nutty flavor of Koginut, these nutrient-rich and flavor-packed vegetables define the essence of the season.

After being under construction for the fall semester, the café that formerly occupied Butler’s Residential College (ResCo) is back with a new look and feel, many new amenities and plenty of old favorites, and a new name – Midtown Provisions.  

We’re so proud of our colleague Katy Maher, MPH, RDN, LDN, for being recognized by our parent company, Compass Group, as one of their first Planet Promise Changemakers. Katy has been instrumental in furthering sustainability initiatives for Bon Appétit Management Company’s operations at Butler University in Indianapolis, IN, from the dining hall to the campus farm and beyond.

Mushrooms are having a moment. With a rise in mushroom-themed art, beauty, fashion, film, and culinary and wellness explorations, mushrooms’ popularity has risen exponentially in recent years. The collective fondness for ‘shrooms includes many of those on the college campuses we serve.

Tucked away on the edge of campus, over a bridge and beside the athletic fields, lies The Farm at Butler, a gem within Butler University in Indianapolis, IN.  Just shy of one acre, this agricultural oasis is a clear example of how urban farming can transform previously dormant land into a thriving ecosystem and classroom.  

There’s reason to celebrate in California this week – Proposition 12, which voters in the state overwhelmingly supported on the ballot in 2018, is fully implemented as of January 1, 2024.

At Bon Appétit Management Company, we’ve been looking at food loss and food waste prevention as critical levers in combatting the climate crisis since 2007. So we were pleased to see the Biden-Harris Draft National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics, as recently published in a joint effort via the USDA, EPA, and FDA and released at COP28 in December.