Events at the Union, like Union After Dark, create opportunities for food waste according to some.
“Food waste is always an issue, no matter what side of the industry you’re on,” Andrew Frederick, UW Catering Manager, said.
Catering works directly alongside 7220 Entertainment and other Student Organizations to provide food for events.
“We charge per quantity per person, so you don’t allocate the cost of food waste because it’s already been paid for but it’s just sad to see,” Frederick said. “Still, we do our best to minimize it and they have accounted for the fact that there are not a lot of students on campus this semester.”
Noting a shift in anticipated guest count from 400 to about 250 for events like Union After Dark, Frederick also recognizes that organizers understand the impacts of COVID-19 on student attendance.
“Considering food waste, pre-and post-COVID, it’s about the same,” Frederick said. “You are never going to know how many people attend an event, but if I was in that organizer position I would rather over order than under order.”
While over-ordering is a common practice for events to ensure professional courtesy, Frederick suggests that increased attendance may reduce food waste.
“One suggestion I have for event organizers is to pour a little money into a local Instagram advertisement to try to reach some remote students,” Frederick said.
Alejandra Prado, the 7220 Entertainment Advisor, said that food waste is not a problem.
“At Union After Dark, usually all of our food runs out so we don’t have any leftovers,” Prado said. “We aim to cater to a least 200 students, which usually suffices.”
The variety and quality of food at events like Union After Dark have shifted from snack foods, like charcuterie boards, to hot meals.
“We really focus on comfort foods for our students,” Prado said.
Food has even become a thematic element to Union After Dark events as part of the rebranding process introduced by the Center for Student Involvement and Leadership (CSIL).
“For instance, our last Union After Dark event was themed Winter Fest and had a hot chocolate bar,” Erik Kahl, Associate Director at CSIL, said. “Bar styles are really popular because students can cater to their likes or dietary restrictions and preferences.”
As both sides of the industry do their best to minimize food waste, the Sustainability Coalition (SC) is attempting to provide solutions to food waste.
“Last year, all of the students in the coalition were involved with putting on food security summit for the Shepard Symposium,” Finnegan Jackson, a co-leader of SC, said. “We had a whole afternoon of seminars dedicated to discussing ways to mitigate food security across campus.”
One such proposition was the Good Food Recovery App.
The app would have allowed students to sign up for messages informing them of when and where extra food would be available.
While the app has undergone some serious revision to meet health and safety standards, it is currently in the hands of IT for further development.
“Another idea in development, though it will take several years, is a campus grocery store,” Jackson said. “Surveying possible locations, estimating costs, and what could possibly make food even more accessible to students on campus.”
However, SC and ASUW have been working together to promote a more immediate solution.
“In the 2019-2020 school year, the coalition was given a grant to promote the installation of food pantries across campus,” Jackson said. “There were a few students within the coalition that were also a part of ASUW, and the Food Security Taskforce was born out of that.”
Sarah Carroll, the Deputy Director of the Laramie Soup Kitchen, also wanted to inform students about how the soup kitchen could reduce waste and improve food security on campus.
“We actually have a hard time advertising on campus about our services or volunteerism,” Carroll said. “We have worked with the SLCE office in the last couple of years to fix that, but we have definitely struggled to get information into the hands of students.”
Carroll notes, however, that the contracts that do exist between the soup kitchen and UW stand to benefit both students and the community as it provides one more option for food.
“Our contract took over five years to develop,” Carroll said. “One of the big things is that UW Catering doesn’t donate anything that wasn’t already purchased by someone, meaning that these are items that someone doesn’t want to see go to waste.”
“It’s hot food versus a pantry,” Carroll said. “While a pantry is awesome, if you have no idea how to cook then maybe a pantry isn’t the best option for you.”
