The shaded tables along Harborwalk were stocked up with an array of food to celebrate Food Day. Despite the small turnout to the event, it hasn’t slowed down the combined efforts of S.E.A.S. and the Gardening Club to draw interest in what types of food should be offered in the new Multipurpose Student Center.
Food Day is a national event held on Oct. 24. According to foodday.org, its mission is to “bring together Americans from all walks of life… to push for healthy, affordable food produced in a sustainable, humane way.”
Students from S.E.A.S. and the Gardening Club collaborated for the event in celebration of the day to gain interest in the dining services task force. The group meets biweekly on Tuesdays in STG 109 to discuss food options in the Multipurpose Student Center, scheduled to open fall 2012.
Lauren “Ren” Reilly, Student Government senator, organized the event on Harborwalk. For her, it was about people talking about food and “how it affects our carbon footprint,” she said.
Reilly’s goal is to work with the university to meet students’ on-campus food needs. They meet unofficially, “in the sense that administration hasn’t asked us to do it,” she said. Reilly hopes students will have a say in the decision of food types and vendors.
Right now, the dining service task force “happens to be environmental students,” Reilly said. “Some people think we’re a bunch of hippies trying to get vegetarian and vegan food [in the dining hall].”
The dining services task force plans to create a survey to find out what students want the dining hall to offer. Sustainability and healthier and organic options are on the agenda. The group plans to examine the costs of cheaper vendors who can provide what the majority of what students want.
Kenya Ricks, sophomore education major, said she wants to be part of the dining services task force, and was the first person to sign up at the food day event.
“I like to voice my opinion. I complain a lot, so I should feel like I should say something,” she said.
Mike Leggett, junior environmental science and policy major, collaborated with Reilly on behalf of S.E.A.S. at Monday’s event. Making sure there are options for students is at the top of his list.
“We want to make sure it’s not all McDonald’s and Chick-fil-A,” he said.
Photo by Taylor Gaudens
