Think about the last time you walked around Northeastern University’s campus looking for something to eat, dear Huntington News reader. You were probably in a hurry, as college students often are. Maybe you were on the way to class, or a co-op interview. You passed many dining options. But what should you choose?
Adjusting to campus dining is a rite of passage for college students. For many, it is the first time they lived away from home for an extended period of time. Students fret about the so called “freshman fifteen”, the extra pounds they gain due to the abundance of tasty choices. According to the CDC, 33.6% of adults consume fast food on any given day, and that percentage increases with age.
But did you ever stop to think about where your chicken tenders came from? Who grew those carrots in your salad? Were those apples sustainably harvested? Was the farmer fairly compensated?
In other words, it is time for Northeastern University to implement a fulsome SlowFood program on our campus!
What is “slow food”? Slow, in the context of food is often regarded as an inconvenience. Students and faculty are busy and value grab-and-go dining options. However, one should reassess their prior assumptions.
SlowFood is an international organization founded in 1989. They describe their goal as to “prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions, counteract the rise of fast life and combat people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from and how our food choices affect the world around us.” The three principles of SlowFood are good, clean, and fair. Good means the food is healthy and flavorful. Clean means it doesn’t harm the environment. Fair food is both affordable to consumers and offers decent compensation for producers.
A 2008 article in Huntington News detailed efforts to bring SlowFood to campus. Professor Aysen Tanyeri-Abur led the charge. She described SlowFood as a “return to earlier times.” She elaborated, “those who choose to live a SlowFood way of life argue that eating locally-grown foods helps avoid shipping processed food across the country, which can pollute the environment.” Other objectives of SlowFood include seed banks, promoting local and traditional food, and educating consumers about their diet.
When considering all these benefits, how could one dismiss the need for expanded SlowFood on campus? Please, RESIST the urge to grab those chicken tenders.
The current state of dining at Northeastern University is mixed. There are over a dozen locations serving students, faculty, and visitors. The campus even used to have a Taco Bell and Pizza Hut in the Curry Student Center, but they were replaced, to the dismay of this author.
The campus has a “Green Plan” to promote sustainable food, but is not directly affiliated with SlowFood. The Green Restaurant Association is an international non-profit that certifies restaurants and encourages sustainability. The website states, “Northeastern is the first college/university in the United States to have a dining facility earn both a 3 Star Certified Green Restaurant® distinction and LEED Gold status.” For example, Argo Tea is a three star location, while Popeyes is a one star location.
The 2021-2022 Green Plan promotes “root-to-tip” cooking, which is an attempt to use as much of the vegetable as possible to reduce waste and increase nutritional value. Cage free eggs and sustainable seafood are also offered. The dining is made to be as “trayless” as possible. While all these efforts are commendable, they do little to educate diners about where their food comes from. In other words, it is not entirely SlowFood.
Northeastern also attempts to make dining accommodations for students with dietary specific needs. For students with food allergies, the university’s website lists ingredients for many of the foods the dining halls prepare. For example, “Northeastern Dining works closely with the University’s administration, Food Advisory Board, and students to provide a variety of nutritious and delicious menu options, personalized service, and exceptional dining experiences.” There are even DAILY menus for Levine Hall so one can examine each meal. For breakfast it lists the calorie counts, such as a “corn muffin” that is “510” calories. Yet this is still not SlowFood.
Consider what another school did to implement SlowFood on their campus. The University of Wisconsin set up a SlowFood chapter in 2011. A 2021 article in a campus newspaper, the Badger Herald, states, “meals made by the organization are intended to be eaten slowly for maximum enjoyment — something our fast-paced, modern society tends to forget.” Members of their chapter prepare two slow food meals each week, ranging from five to eight dollars. Northeastern could demonstrate weekly SlowFood meals to students as part of an interactive cooking experience. Otherwise, SlowFood is merely an abstraction.
But there is MORE that can be done. Northeastern should try to adopt the three principles of SlowFood in its dining halls.
Firstly, the university should implement “good” food by establishing guidelines for every meal in the residential dining halls, such as calorie and sugar restrictions. This would ensure that students have healthy choices closest to their dorms.
Secondly, Northeastern should strive “clean” food by procuring as much organic and sustainably harvested food as possible. A percentage could be chosen, or specific categories of food could be restricted to organic ingredients.
Thirdly, “fair” food should be a Northeastern dining principle. In addition to the food being affordable to purchase, the university should outline specific compensation guidelines for all its food suppliers. Northeastern should not buy food from sources that exploit laborers or small businesses.
To be sure, SlowFood poses challenges. Adding SlowFood would add financial costs to the university. But as mentioned, another university demonstrated SlowFood easily. It’s a start. Some may object that SlowFood can limit culinary choices. For example, many types of produce are seasonal. However, modern technology and refrigeration can mitigate this issue. Lastly, some members of the campus may question whether slow food even matters. But we live in an interconnected world. You did not come all the way to college to accept the status quo, did you?
Do not be slow in your introduction to SlowFood. The group meets every Tuesday at 6pm-7pm, in International Village room 014. What if you cannot make the meeting in person? No problem! They offer Zoom livestreams to. Join the SlowFood movement for a better Northeastern. We can all do our part to improve campus dining.
Works Cited Page
1. Fast Food Consumption Among Adults in... Retrieved February 21, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db322.htm
2. Locations and Campus Map. Retrieved, February 15, 2022, from https://www.nudining.com/public/locations-and-campus-map
3. Lyons, K. (2021, December 8). ‘Slow Food UW: Meet…” Retrieved, February 25, 2022, from https://badgerherald.com/artsetc/2021/12/08/slow-food-uw-meet-the-students-who- are-feeding-uws-masses/
4. Reil, C (2008, November 16). ‘Reformers Push Slow…’ Retreived, February 25, 2022, from https://huntnewsnu.com/8465/campus/reformers-push-for-slow-food-on-campus/
5. SlowFood . Retrieved February 25, 2022 from
https://www.slowfood.com/
6. SlowFood. Retrieved, February, 24, 2022, from https://neu.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/slow-food-nu
7. SlowFood. Retrieved, February, 24, 2022, from
https://slowfoodnu.wordpress.com/
8. Sustainability. Retrieved, February 25, 2022, from https://www.nudining.com/public/sustainability
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