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Printer-Friendly ModeStudents demand healthier options
Prompted by survey results, Dining Services plans to bring in healthier foods
February 25, 2008 —
Students who eat on campus, either by choice or by necessity may soon have healthier options available.
SVSU is adding new natural and organic meals to the RFoC station, Starbucks, the C-store, Einstein's Eatery, and Apple Slice. The changes come in response to dining surveys given to students once a month, which have shown an increase in demand for healthier food options.
"We take those surveys very seriously," said Lindsey Carpenter, dining services representative.
In response to the surveys, more meals in the RFoC are 100 percent natural and organic, meaning all the ingredients are free range, pesticide-free and hormone-free.
"People feel like 'organic' must mean gross, and we are trying to combat that misconception," said Carpenter.
Some examples of the natural and organic meals offered are the house chicken penne pasta and penne cacciatore.
"I enjoy the stir fry because it has some veggies," senior Maggie VonGuilder said.
Many students are happy to have the choice of fresh and healthy snacks as well as entire meals.
"One thing that has gone over just gangbusters is the open air cooler that's in the RFoC that has all the fresh fruit and fresh vegetables already cut up," Carpenter said. "It's been great because people love it and all the better that they can grab a healthy snack as an alternative."
Even students who do not benefit directly from the increase in organic foods have a favorable opinion of the move towards healthier options.
"I don't eat at school very much but if I did I would eat the organic stuff over anything else," senior and nursing major Ashley Jackson said.
"The challenge," said Carpenter, "is to get the best food quality possible, without throwing the cost out of whack."
Right now, prices on organic foods are the same as the non-organic selections.
"When you walk into any station that sells organic food, the students are paying the same price as any other product," said Carpenter.
Carpenter hopes that it continues to be an option for people that want to choose a natural organic product.
One of the ways SVSU is promoting natural and organic meals is through the Web site www.campusdish.com/en-us/CSMW/SaginawValley. It views weekly menu options, nutritional information, as well as links to information about health and wellness related-resources. The site is accessible through SVSUs' Food and Dining link. The Web site is useful for any faculty or student who wishes to learn more about healthy living.
As of today, the goal of SVSU Dining Services is to give students the option for healthier foods.
Carpenter looks forward to the future of organic food on campus, saying SVSU is "hoping that the students and faculty really want to buy into living better and better quality ingredients."
