Feeling ripped off by the food? Upset that you’re paying restaurant prices for cafeteria dinners? Well be prepared to feel even more cheated. Bon App‚tit has shrunk portion sizes. Rice Krispies treats and brownies are slightly smaller (but not any cheaper), according to Rick Turner, director of operations for Dining Services. Over the summer, Dining Services consulted with the University dietician to bring portion sizes more in line with the USDA’s Food Pyramid. That’s quite a positive spin on decreasing portion sizes: it’s not downsizing, it’s “rightsizing”!
And what are they doing with the cost savings from providing less sustenance? Wrapping treats like brownies in individual plastic bags with gold foil ties. Very pretty. Everyone knows that attractively packaged foods taste better. And in fact, Turner said that aesthetics were a big factor in moving toward the bags. “They’re more up-to-date,” he said in a phone interview. Upscale packaging in the brand new Whispers cybercaf‚-you can’t get trendier than that.
Or can you? Concern for the environment is still “in,” as is holding food prices down to help students graduate with manageable debt. Dining Services seems hip to the first trend. Turner said the decision to bag sandwiches was due in part to environmental concerns. Compared to the old bulky plastic containers, the bags produce far less waste. Dining Services can go further, though, and eliminate more waste by nixing bags for brownies and Rice Krispies treats. They could put these items, unwrapped, in display cases, like the muffins, scones and other treats. Germs aren’t an issue, since employees handle food items with tongs already.
Turner admitted that the new packaging costs more, though he didn’t immediately know how much. That cost did not figure prominently in the decision to bag sweets, he said. Getting rid of brownie bags would cut costs-and therefore save students money-in two ways: one, by eliminating the work hours needed to bag the treats and put the twist tie on; two, by eliminating the need to buy those bags and twist ties.
On Monday, we called for the University to hire an auditing firm to point out inefficiencies in University operations. Bagging treats is just the sort of inefficiency we had in mind. Think of all the little things on campus that could be changed to make the University a leaner, more cost-sensitive entity. The University should make an effort to save students money. How else will students be able to afford supplementing the newly reduced portions with pizza deliveries?