The to-go containers in the Caf were a huge hit when they were fully put into place during the 2021-2022 school year, cycling about 150 to 175 containers and key fobs, which allow the students to receive the boxes, a day. 

The ability to take your food to go is revolutionary, especially for full-time students and athletes. Although we have advanced to reusable plastic in The Caf the question we all still have is: Why can’t we get to-go containers at Picante’s and What the Mav?

Picante’s and What the Mav are two of the more popular spots to get food on campus. Located in Tomlinson Library on the southern end of campus, it has easy access and tasty food for the students who might not want to eat in the Caf. 

Including plastic containers in the library would further reduce the amount of waste on campus as a whole. Using paper products doesn’t follow the Go-Green movement, and it contradicts everything that idea stands for.

If the school really cares about the environment, the administration should start taking steps now to expand the plastic containers to the library. I sat down with the Director of Operations of Sodexo, Zita Nisley, to find out why that was the case. 

After long discussion about the history of the food containers and the proactive nature of the Go-Green movement on campus, it was revealed that there simply is not a safe and healthy way to incorporate the To-Go containers into the library.

She explained to me that because the To-Go containers are so popular and are cycled through so quickly, the dish crew must be on top of cleaning them out for their reuse. In the Caf, there is a huge dish washing operation while the library only has a smaller machine. The smaller machine can’t wash dishes at the same productivity level as the machine in The Caf. 

The only foreseeable solution at this point would be to expand the space behind Picante’s and What the Mav to allow for more dishwashing manpower to keep the containers and our planet clean.