Poor consumerism habits catch on quick during a fast-paced and busy school year. Take a look around the items sorted on the shelves the next time you are in a cafeteria. If you purchase a package of Ramen Noodles, do you know where the ingredients came from? How much went into manufacturing the plastic packaging? Is the package recyclable? These answers may be hard to find in real time, so here are six simple ways to dine mindfully on campus.
1. Buy a reusable drinking container
Ditch your plastic or boxed water bottle, save money and reduce waste with a reusable drink container in BSU Dining. Fountain drinks and self-serve coffee in BSU Dining mugs, tumblers and bottles are only 80 cents. Purchase a BSU Dining container at any register for $6, plus a coupon for a free fill. Water in all Dining locations is free in any type of reusable container.
If you buy one fountain or coffee drink per day, your tumbler will pay for itself in less than two weeks.
3. Recycle
Recycling bins are located in all BSU Dining facilities for your disposables. If you live in a residence hall, place your recyclables in the blue bags in each trash room. If you live off campus, you can request blue recycling bags from the Muncie Sanitary District.
Get a coupon to receive a free roll of 10-30 gallon recycling bags. To receive coupons in the mail, call 765-747-4894 or email billing@munciesanitary.org.
Don’t feel like waiting? Go to the following retail stores to receive your coupon:
- Cover-Tek
- Marsh and Hometown Markets
- Muncie Public Libraries
- Cardinal Greenway Depot
- Muncie Mall Guest Services
- Muncie Sanitary District
- Downtown Development Office
- Downtown Farm Stand
- MD’s Golf Academy
- Be Here Now
- The Fickle Peach
- Kirk’s Bike Shop
- Boys and Girls Club
- Habitat for Humanity ReStore
2. Try a vegetarian diet
Meat requires more energy and water than vegetables in its journey from farm to table. Plus, over 99 percent of farm animals in the U.S. are raised in factory farms that focus on profit and efficiency at the expense of the animals’ welfare, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The cattle that supply most beef generally spend the last few months of their lives on crowded feedlots, where they are fattened up on corn, cereals and animal by-products. Visit factoryfarmmap.org to see how many, and which, animals are in factory farms throughout Delaware Co., Indiana, and the United States.
You can start a vegetarian diet by eating at least one meatless meal per week. University Dining has a variety of custom vegetarian options: beans, quinoa, tofu or meatless Gardein offerings for protein.
4. Reduce food waste
On average, diners leave 17 percent of meals uneaten and 55 percent of these potential leftovers are not taken home, according to Natural Resources Defense Council. Reducing food waste by 20 percent would provide enough food to feed 25 million people. One of the easiest ways to reduce food waste is to take smaller portions.
5. Rely on reusable flatware
Recycling plasticware is great, but reusing flatware is best. Purchase a To-Go Ware Bamboo Utensil Set or use the flatware available for free in the following BSU Dining halls: Woodworth Commons, Noyer Center, The Buff in LaFollette Square, Elliott Dining and The Retreat in Noyer Centre.
Note: The locations that do not offer flatware are convenience locations without dining areas or locations that do not have the dishwashing equipment and tray return belts necessary to handle large quantities of flatware.
6. Limit napkins and utensils
Avoid grabbing multiple napkins or utensils. If a meal is not messy, limit yourself to only the napkins you need. Similarly, if you don’t need each utensil, take only what you need.
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This article is part of the Campus Green Guide, a free custom publication of Ball State Unified Media.
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