Photo courtesy of Ally Boniker
Students heading to the Marketplace for lunch Tuesday, Feb. 4 may have been surprised to find that the trays in the Marketplace were missing.
Dining Services removed the Marketplace trays, introducing “Trayless Tuesday” as a possible way to reduce food waste at Elizabethtown College. The plan was to test whether removing the trays would decrease food waste by making students more aware of the amount of food they were grabbing and to prevent students from filling up the tray with food for which they were not actually hungry. If the amount of food waste decreased during the hours the trays were removed, then the trays could be identified as a major cause of food waste.
“I think a lot of students have issues with trying to load too much stuff on their plates, and people will have three different plates on the same tray,” sophomore Grace Fernandez said. “When we have just two hands and can only carry one or two plates, it will help students know how much food they’re having.”
There were mixed reactions to the plan. Many students expressed frustration at having to balance silverware, plates, cups and bowls or else make multiple trips between their table and the food lines. Another concern students had about Trayless Tuesday was that the tables in the Marketplace were messier without the trays to catch spills.
“I recognize the problem of food waste, and I think if you look at the Marketplace on a normal day, people do get a lot of food and then not eat it, so I see the impetus for it, but I felt it was a little inconvenient,” senior Michael Snyder said. “I saw people with bowls on their arms and stuff trying to carry them. It’s a little inconvenient, but if it’s once a week and only a few hours long and is for a good cause I support it.”
However, despite the frustration and inconveniences caused, students recognized that the issue of food waste is an important one for the College to work on improving.
“I think this is a really good idea that takes steps towards becoming more sustainable, which is really great,” junior Rebecca Li said.
“I think it’s a good idea. It saves water,” junior Christian Morley said. “I don’t think it’s something they should do every day of the week, but maybe on the weekends.”
Although Dining Services originally planned to repeat Trayless Tuesday, Feb. 11, with possible further trials to gather more data, the lack of positive student responses led to the decision to delay the second Trayless Tuesday.
