To-go boxes keep stressed students from starving
Eco-friendly boxes at three dining halls are being tested for time-restricted students.
Published Sept. 14, 2010
A carryout meal option is now available at three campus dining halls due in part to the work of the Missouri Students Association Student Affairs Committee.
This new system will allow students to utilize their meal plans without having to sit down in a dining hall to eat. Students will go through the lines as usual, but instead of using plates, they will use a box they can leave with.
"This is designed for people who don't have much time to sit in the dining room to eat but are still wanting a hot meal," Campus Dining Services Director Julaine Kiehn said.
According to CDS, the dining halls participating in this new system are Pavilion at Dobbs, Eva J's and Mark Twain Market. If this program is successful and wanted by students, there is a chance that other dining halls on campus will take part in the carryout system.
Kiehn said this plan was initiated to lessen the crowds of the dining halls as well as allow time-restricted students the advantage of getting their food to-go.
"It seems like a really successful system," Student Affairs Vice Chairman Tyler Ricketts said. "I think students are really thankful for it."
The Student Affairs Committee first recommended the idea to CDS last March after the committee noticed some students did not have a reasonable amount of time to eat in between classes.
"The Student Affairs Committee came to us with the concept, and we worked out the parameters and specifics," Kiehn said.
The carryout system is cost-effective for CDS.
"It seemed that we would be able to save money because people would only go through the line once, and they would not be able to takes as much food," MSA Student Affairs Chairwoman Michelle Horan said.
In April, the carryout system was piloted at Pavilion at Dobbs. The carryout average was 50 meals per mealtime, Keihn said.
She said the only foreseeable problem with the carryout system was whether students would abuse the system by taking home another meal after sitting down and eating their first.
"Very few students abused the carryout system," Horan said. "It was used exactly what it was intended for."
The actual carryout boxes are eco-friendly and made from recycled products. By researching other products, Kiehn said CDS made sure that the Earthchoice brand boxes lived up to their name.
"It is made with 40 percent talc-blended material, which reduces the amount of plastic used," Kiehn said.
This product is able to withstand hot temperatures so students are still able to have a hot meal to go. Ricketts said this feature is especially important to students who have no choice but to eat after the dining halls close.
"I have some Muslim friends who, because of Ramadan, aren't allowed to eat until after sunset," Ricketts said. "It's a service provided for students, and I don't see how anyone could be opposed to it."