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Schools ditching lunch trays to save resources

Attempt to replace trays at Liz Waters displeases students

Fear of the “freshman 15” could be forgotten as an increasing number of colleges and universities opt to ditch their lunch trays in an effort to save food, water and money.

The Sustainable Endowments Institute, which monitors the environmental efficiency of the 300 colleges and universities with the largest endowments, reported 126 have stopped using trays to serve food thus far.

While some colleges have gone entirely tray-free, others have made minor switches to conserve. The University of New Hampshire, for example, has implemented “Tray-less Tuesdays” to be more cost efficient and environmentally friendly, according to a report from the National Association of College and University Food Services.

Doug Lockwood, office manager for Cornell Dining at Cornell University in New York, said the university decided to go partially tray-less because of students’ requests to reduce waste, water and chemical consumption.

“One of the reasons we haven’t gone completely tray-less is because of dish return belts, the way they are set up, the silverware and plates and glasses would fall through so they aren’t compatible for going tray-less,” Lockwood said.

Students reacted positively to the decision to stop using trays in some of the cafeterias, Lockwood said, but faculty members were not as supportive of the change and complained about the inconvenience of getting up for seconds, though the complaints quickly faded.

Athletes who typically eat larger amounts of food voiced concern towards the removal of trays as well, Lockwood added.

Lockwood also said the school has yet to test the effectiveness of abstaining from tray use, but he added the school suspects they have saved on food costs in utilities and decreased waste.

According to the working report from NACUFS, West Virginia University saw a 41 percent reduction in waste at facilities that do not use trays compared to the on-campus facilities still using trays.

The University of Wisconsin-River Falls has also reported curtailing the use of trays.

Although the university has no concrete evidence of financial savings, Jerry Waller, administrative program manager for student affairs at UW River-Falls, said he suspects removing lunch trays from the cafeterias has been economically beneficial.

Waller added he observed shorter lines and less beverage consumption when the university removed trays.

Although the general reaction to the removal was positive, Waller said the lack of trays resulted in a bigger mess.

According to Food Service Manager Brian Burke, the University Wisconsin has not ditched the use of lunch trays just yet.

“It’s been discussed certainly, but in our situation where we operate ‘a la carte’ as opposed to a meal plan or all-you-can-eat situation, we have not considered going that route at least as of now,” Burke said.

Burke added while removing lunch trays from the picture was not likely to happen anytime soon, the school attempted using trays made of recycled materials in Elizabeth Waters Hall as a more environmentally-friendly dining approach.

Students did not react positively to the change, Burke said, noting they reported the trays being “too flimsy.”

“They want their old trays back,” Burke said.