The call for reform of science education is nearly three decades old (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983), but the implementation of such education improvements in the form of active learning techniques in large enrollment classes remains difficult. Here we present a class project designed to increase student involvement and quantitative analysis skills in a large enrollment lecture geared towards nonscience majors. We use the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic analyses of hair to teach students about the impacts of industrial agriculture through quantitative assessment of diet in an environmental science course. Assessment of student learning, which was determined through exam questions and also through a feedback questionnaire, was overwhelmingly positive, demonstrating the usefulness of this technique in bringing active learning to the large enrollment classroom.