Students want fresh local food

College cafeterias in the US serve produce grown close to home writes Judith Weinraub

The braised short ribs and mashed Yukon Gold potatoes at Washington's American University's Terrace dining room were definite hits.

So were the roasted beets, the baby fennel and wild mushroom gratin, and, from the salad bar, the organic arugula and the red, orange and yellow cherry and globe tomatoes.

Does that sound like the cafeteria food at your college? Probably not. That's because these dishes were part of a special meal created by chef William Goldman to take advantage of fresh local products that are in season.

Every item on his menu that day was grown, raised or produced within a 150-mile radius of the university.

To regulars, it made a difference - nd provided a welcome diversion from the controversy over AU president Benjamin Ladner's spending. "The salad bar is awesome today,'' said B.J. Soto, a staff counsellor for international students and a vegetarian who eats there regularly.

Joe Vidulich, a 19-year-old sophomore in the School of Public Affairs and a self-described carnivore, thought so, too. "It looks more like a home-cooked meal,'' he said.

Freshness and flavour

"Seasonal'' and "local'' are the watchwords of the food world today. Consumers are learning to buy produce from nearby sources to get freshness and flavour.

Locally grown fruits and vegetables are more likely to be recently harvested, and buying close to home appeals to the environmentally conscious because it uses fewer resources for transportation.

These days, any restaurant that wants to be taken seriously pays attention to the fresh and seasonal mantra. That's a realistic goal in the world of fine dining, where chefs can have ongoing arrangements with the area's local farmers.

But it's harder to manage at the large-scale food halls and cafeterias at universities and colleges.
Locally grown food tends to be sold in smaller units and they are often more expensive.

And if the farmers who sell those local products aren't part of a regular delivery system, the foods are sometimes harder to find.

Do students value local food?

To make the effort worthwhile for the food service provider, students have to value fresh local food. If the growing number of activist student groups all over the country that want their schools to serve locally grown foods is any indication, many of them already do.

Many schools are acutely aware of exactly how students feel about the food. "They come to me when they're happy or unhappy, or want something different,'' said Julie Weber, AU's executive director of housing and dining programmes.

And that's in everyone's interests. If the university's food isn't good, fewer students will buy meal plans, which are often mandatory for freshmen but not for other students.

At many universities, including AU, students are included on food and dining committees set up by the school to discuss such issues as students' taste preferences and dietary requirements.

Two years ago, a student delegation told Weber and the food committee that some students wanted vegetarian and vegan offerings.

Now a food station that serves only those foods is one of the most popular in the dining room. "It's more expensive, but it's a great leap forward,'' Weber said.