Campus Dining From a Different Perspective
It’s a well-known fact among college students that the food served at universities holds no comparison to mom’s home-cooked meals. We all end up making sacrifices, but the real struggle lies in the hands of both the vegetarians and vegans on campus.
“Believe it or not, not every vegan or vegetarian likes salad and raw fruit for every meal, every day,” said sophomore Dareen Qaddoumi, a jurisprudence and political science double major who has been a vegetarian for four years. Quaddoumi noted that the options available to her “are quite dismal”.
Freeman Dining Hall seems to be a standout to vegetarians and vegans in terms of variety. Students find themselves gravitating there because of their veggie burgers, hummus wraps, potatoes, rice, and various kinds of vegetables.
Sophomore Emery Rosado, a political science major who has been eating vegetarian since she was in kindergarten, would love to see a dining hall on campus that serves vegan and vegetarian options. “I would add food that are made with vegan eggs, vegan cheese, and more variety in what is already there. Like more fruits, for example,” said Rosado.
Others agree that there should be at least one place on campus that serves entirely vegan options. “There ought to be meals reminiscent of those found throughout the campus, yet simply made with vegan dairy and egg substitutes. I would also like to see, at minimum, one or two vegan options at all food locations,” Qaddoumi said.
To anyone looking to go either vegetarian or vegan, but don’t know if it’s manageable in college: it is possible here if you do your research. “One tip I have is to have lots of vegan foods in your room, especially things with protein,” Jessica Karasik said, a sophomore family and child studies major who decided to go vegan last October. Qaddoumi would “recommend that students looking to make the change start by mapping out certain days or meals each week in which they will abstain from animal derived products.”
There are obstacles that vegan or vegetarian students face in college because of their lifestyle, and there’s no doubt they have a harder time putting together meals than any other student. However, there is also a great feeling of satisfaction that comes with it that makes it worthwhile for these students.
“I didn’t think I could do it, especially at college,” Karasik said. “But I’ve never felt better. Physically, emotionally, and ethically. I don’t regret it one bit!”
As a sophomore, Heather Francis is the President and co-founder of Montclair State’s Animal Activists Organization. After taking a critical animal studies course her freshman year, she decided to round up a few classmates for an e-board and created the group.
The mission of the club is to inspire other students on campus to make a difference in the animal rights movement while also raising awareness for animal rights, factory farming, the sustainability of our planet, and their own health.
“I think there can always be better options on campus,” Francis said. “Health is the number one priority. I have struggled with finding food to eat, but I’d say my go-to meal has to be the veggie sushi roll in the Student Center with avocado, carrot, and cucumber in a brown rice roll. I usually eat two of these for lunch and it’s super filling.”
Francis and the rest of the Animal Activists members are simultaneously bettering the lives of students as well as animals by taking huge strides to facilitate eating vegan on campus.
Within one year, this new organization gained 2,143 signatures for a petition in favor of an exclusively plant-based and gluten-free station being added to a campus dining hall. The petition was brought to every event they hosted, and passed along to each class the e-board members went to. After meeting with the university’s dining services team, it became official that a new section would be added to Sam’s Dining Hall in 2018.
“It feels amazing to have accomplished something so necessary for our campus community,” President and co-founder of Animal Activists Heather Francis said. “It feels like I can accomplish anything. It also shows how when people are passionate about an issue, something can change.”
Francis stresses the importance of there being just as many meatless and dairy free options on campus as there are for non-vegan students. “Non-vegan students eat vegan food. If we had just as much vegan food to non-vegan food, we’d be at a balance,” the sophomore states. “When we are only given a salad bar, it becomes tiresome and boring. It also takes the nutritious value out of our food.”
However, Francis’ main drive for implementing more vegan dining hall options is selfless: “I think it’s important for the sheer fact that going vegan can save lives of animals, the planet, and people. The more vegan food we have the more change is occurring that will ultimately do good for our world.”
