Organic on campus

Marta Schoenle has been eating organic food all her life. In addition, she keeps a strictly vegan diet. No meat, poultry, eggs, fish, gelatin or dairy products.

"I've been eating organic food for as long as I can remember," said Schoenle, a sophomore fine arts major.

With students like Schoenle on campus who regularly consume organic products, the demand for UB to provide students more options when it comes to alternative eating lifestyles is growing. This is a demand UB is preparing to meet very soon.

Cindy Youngers, the assistant director of Campus Dining and Shops, has been with UB for seven years. Presently, the availability of strictly all organic options is fairly limited, but UB is looking to expand the availability of organic options for students.

"Our purchasing department is working on what's available in the organic arena," Youngers said. "We're always looking toward the future and what's going to be the next hot item, what's the next thing students are going to be looking for."

There are currently a variety of options for vegan and vegetarian eating on campus, but none solely for organic foods.

"Richmond is our signature showplace for vegan and vegetarian items," Youngers said. "We have a pretty large selection out there. Many of the vegan and vegetarian foods also are organic."

Though Youngers estimates that there is only a five percent student body demand for organic foods, she expects this will be a growing trend. But the goal of implementing more organic options for students has brought challenges.

"We've run into two problems with the companies that we're working with. One of them, actually, currently supplies Wegmans," Youngers said. "The variety is definitely pretty big, but when we bring products on campus we don't just order them from a catalog or from the supplier's list, we bring them in and cut them and take a look at the quality."

"We have to see if these are things we can replicate in an institutional large volume," she said.

Another problem, Youngers explains, is that trucks need to be able to get into the tunnels of the Ellicott Complex.

"Tractor trailers won't be able to get into the tunnels," she said. "Whoever we go with has to be able to provide smaller trucks to be able to make the delivery."

The downside of organic food on campus is that it is more expensive, about 30 percent more than non-organic, according to Youngers.

While students like Schoenle, who maintains a strict diet, are appreciative of the changes UB is making in it's food services, other students are not so excited. Victoria Orero, a junior legal studies and sociology major, has experimented with a variety of diets, but maintains what she calls the typical college student's diet.

"I've tasted organic food before," Orero said. "It's just not appealing. I'm always saying I'll eat healthier, but unfortunately my taste buds are still intact."

Youngers said that organic food isn't always as tasteless as some may think, they have often ordered a new product only to find out later that it is organic. They will be introducing Shock Coffee in the next couple of weeks, and they discovered in a presentation from the manufacturer that in addition to having extra caffeine, it is organic as well.

Despite the strides of Campus Dining and Shops, Youngers still recognizes that UB has a long way to go before they can provide a full organic menu for students.

"We look for quality and feasibility," she said. "Some things are great when you're cooking for six or four people, but we need to replicate it for thousands."

Schoenle, who regularly eats organic, feels Campus Dining and Shops should not only focus on organic, but more options for eating healthy meals.

"The Kosher Deli is the best place to get vegan food, but after a while you feel like you're eating the same thing every day," she said. "Even the Student Union doesn't have many options. You can only eat so many veggie burgers or humus wraps."

Youngers encourages students to speak up when it comes to expanding their diet options.

"It's really through student feedback that a lot of these programs are able to happen," she said.