SCA/Aramark Alumna Ila Galanti was recently recognized by the industry site Food Service Director as an industry leader under the age of 30.
As an intern in 2011, Ila Galanti served at the University of Chicago developing the sustainable eating program.
Following completion of her internship Ila was hired full time by Aramark where according to Kathy Cacciola, senior director of environmental sustainability, she continued positively impact the dining services program at the University of Chicago.
In a brief interview Ila described working with the culinary staff to create recipes that reflect seasonality, additional vegan and vegetarian options, and local food sources. In her two years at the University of Chicago, Ila has developed a system to identify and educate students of the allergens, ingredients, in their recipies. One of the challenges she had to address is to redirect the misinformation that students receive from the Internet/media. “A lot of students feel there are not healthy options available. But what I find most often is that they have a skewed sense of what is healthy based on fad diets and unsubstantiated claims that are made throughout the industry,” said Galanti.
Ila also planned an Earth Week dinner and working with the campus Sustainability Council to support initiatives such as an anti-bottled water campaign and composting.