When the new University Center opens in 2007, Aramark may well be out with old. At the moment, the University is considering the possibility of contracting out to another dining company. In addition to three large corporations, the owners of WesWings and the Red and Black Café have expressed interest in placing a bid should they be given the opportunity.
Due to the well-documented disputes between Aramark and students in the past, the switch to another food provider presents an appealing chance for change. Yet, we have little reason to believe that the move to a similarly sized company would offer anything different. Sodexho, a potential candidate for the bid, was featured in the prandial bonanzas of the movie “Super Size Me.” That aside, large corporations pose many of the same problems as Aramark: due to their bureaucratic structure, it becomes difficult to quickly address student concerns and to tailor food programs explicitly to Wesleyan tastes. Though in light of the sheer bulk of their daily purchases, these companies often can buy at lower prices, we have yet to see the effects of these more “affordable” practices: at more than a dollar a point, a bottle of water costs almost twice as much as it would in a grocery store.
In this sense, keeping campus dining options in the hands of those who know Wesleyan appears the best option. The owners of WesWings and the Red and Black Café are Wesleyan alumni who are familiar with the student body and have a commitment to the community. In the event that they could feasibly expand to encompass the entire campus, and accommodate the diversity of dietary needs and desires, they present an appealing case. In this sense, we could look to peer institutions who employ small, local groups to run their food service and purchase a majority of their agricultural products through sources in their community.
Administrators should also consider the possibility of allowing upperclassmen living in housing with kitchens to opt out of the meal plan. This greater element of choice would ensure that those offering their input about dining options were those who were using the services most consistently. It would also, needless to say, save those pinching pennies a lot of money.
In any event, a new bid should not be given at the expense of the jobs of current dining workers.
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