Spring Break
Trayless Experiment Successful
Kate King
Issue date: 3/6/08 Section: News
Student reactions to trayless dinners will be a major factor in considering whether or not to eliminate trays at Whitney permanently.
"We certainly don't want this to be something people will hate, but it's the right thing to do at the same time," said Denise Beal, assistant director of dining services.
For Bethany Ober, an 8th-semester English major, the educational week of the experiment was an effective method for cutting down on food waste.
"For me personally, since they started talking about it, I made a conscious effort not to take everything I want to try but only what I'm going to eat," said Ober, who learned about food waste reduction from table tents provided by dining services and OEP. "I don't think the trays have anything to do with it."
Katy Laguzza, an 8th-semester puppetry major, didn't mind the trayless dining experience, however.
"I think it's a good thing and that people should stop being wimps and make more than one trip [to get their food]," Laguzza said.
Trayless dining is something that Colby College has been exploring for about four years now, according to Joe Klaus, associate director of dining services at Colby College. Every Thursday, Colby does not offer trays at two out of the campus's three dining halls. The college has also taken away trays at the request of student groups on certain days that coincide with environmental events on campus, Klaus said. The trayless meals cut down on food waste by about one third.
Although there is a dedicated environmental movement at Colby, there are also an increasing number of students who do not support trayless dining, according to Klaus. These students don't like the inconvenience of trayless dining and have protested it in a number of ways. Some members of the football team use chairs to carry their food on when trays are not available in the dining hall, Klaus said. The college's woodsmen team protests trayless dining by chopping up foot long wooden disks and bringing them to the dining hall.
"We've had some creativity," Klaus said.
Contact Kate King at
Katherine.King@UConn.edu.
"We certainly don't want this to be something people will hate, but it's the right thing to do at the same time," said Denise Beal, assistant director of dining services.
For Bethany Ober, an 8th-semester English major, the educational week of the experiment was an effective method for cutting down on food waste.
"For me personally, since they started talking about it, I made a conscious effort not to take everything I want to try but only what I'm going to eat," said Ober, who learned about food waste reduction from table tents provided by dining services and OEP. "I don't think the trays have anything to do with it."
Katy Laguzza, an 8th-semester puppetry major, didn't mind the trayless dining experience, however.
"I think it's a good thing and that people should stop being wimps and make more than one trip [to get their food]," Laguzza said.
Trayless dining is something that Colby College has been exploring for about four years now, according to Joe Klaus, associate director of dining services at Colby College. Every Thursday, Colby does not offer trays at two out of the campus's three dining halls. The college has also taken away trays at the request of student groups on certain days that coincide with environmental events on campus, Klaus said. The trayless meals cut down on food waste by about one third.
Although there is a dedicated environmental movement at Colby, there are also an increasing number of students who do not support trayless dining, according to Klaus. These students don't like the inconvenience of trayless dining and have protested it in a number of ways. Some members of the football team use chairs to carry their food on when trays are not available in the dining hall, Klaus said. The college's woodsmen team protests trayless dining by chopping up foot long wooden disks and bringing them to the dining hall.
"We've had some creativity," Klaus said.
Contact Kate King at
Katherine.King@UConn.edu.
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