Comments on: College cafeterias: ‘Got trays?’

By: Tom

Tom — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:04:32 +0000

Our school went trayless three years ago and it was received well by all constituents. The few complaints were well worth the savings on food waste, savings from not washing 600 trays per meal, savings from the cost of replacing trays and the more important emphasis on taking smaller quantities for health reasons. I think our community adapted well because of their commitment to personal as well as environmental sustainability.

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:54:43 +0000

Seems simple to me that trays could be rented out for a $1 or $2 deposit when students take their lunch. I know they may be on a prepaid meal plan, but that does not necessarily include trays. Whoever returns the undamaged tray gets a token for another clean one. The cost of paying cash needy student(s) employee(s) to run the tray return concession should be much less than replacing the trays, and the assurance of clean trays prevents the unwanted spread of disease. Thus, some student(s) benefit from the needed income, the faculty and other “mature” users of trays benefit (see Kristie’s comments above), and the University benefits by saving thousands on trays. Perhaps the snowboard, sled, and flying sauce manufacturers and local merchants would benefit, too, in snowy climates.

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:29:22 +0000

Like Kristie, I attended a school in a snowy climate (this was in the early to mid-1990s) and tray sledding was a popular pastime. The way my school handled it was by eliminating the plastic trays and introducing recycled pressboard trays (totally unsuited for sledding). This is probably not a green enough solution in today’s climate, however.

The university where I now work eliminated trays for a time, but now they have returned – probably in no small part due to the elimination of the faculty dining room. That, and the elimination of trays ended up leading to increased demand for plastic clamshell take-out containers, so while the cafeteria may have been allegedly “greener” in that there were no trays to wash there was apparently a marked increase in plastic in the trash.

By: Anthony

Anthony — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:33:27 +0000

We fall into the group as one of the schools Aramark has decided make trayless. Grumbling ensued from some faculty/staff and some students, however this minority could not change the trend. In my opinion, this switch was done rather covertly, being implemented over the summer with no input from the students with a “green” spin put on it. In the fall students started removing trays from various fast food restaurants close to campus and tried to use them in the cafeterias on campus. Had this been put to a vote or even done in an open manner, I don’t think it would have passed. Similar savings as mentioned in the article were gained, however the cost of meal plans still increased and not at a rate lower than previous years either.

By: Kristie

Kristie — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:27:44 +0000

My school has gone back and forth with trayless dining, but it seems to be back for now. The reasoning for trayless dining here was a bit different from what was talked about in the article. Students were walking off with trays and never returning them. Worse yet, living in a fairly snowy climate, students were stealing trays to go “tray-surfing” on some of the campus’s big hills in winter. This often led to broken trays and trays being discarded in dumpsters or left wedged into snowy hills. The university became sick of the cost of having to replace the trays so they removed them. Complaints ensued, largely from those students and faculty who felt they were being punished for the actions of the immature minority. So trays were reinstated, although in a much smaller quantity. I also agree with Mickey, most students don’t use the trays. It seems that perhaps the best thing to do would be to keep a stack on hand in case anyone asks for one, but to largely discontinue their use publicly.

By: Mickey

Mickey — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:20:53 +0000

We removed trays a two years ago, but students stopped using them four or five years ago. Only freshmen used them, and they only used them the first week.

By: John Mouw

John Mouw — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:54:47 +0000

Trayless dining has been in place here at Saint Leo for a couple of years. Food waste is significantly reduced, not mention energy costs saved by not have to wash trays.

By: Larry Sohn

Larry Sohn — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:17:44 +0000

In general, trayless dining has been accepted on our campus this semester, but with grumbling more from faculty and staff than from students. Our growing problem is the necessity to clean dining hall carpets more frequently. Any suggestions?