The Elephant in the Dining Hall

The most prevalent squash at Harvard these days has nothing to do with a racket or a ball and is more likely to be found on a plate than on the court. A glance at the Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) menu for this week exemplifies the many variations of squash available to diners: maple roasted butternut squash, candy roaster squash, festival squash with cinnamon, spaghetti squash, and more. Answering students’ bewilderment as to why this vegetable is suddenly a staple in the dining hall, the HUDS blog says, “Why so much squash? It’s one of the few crops that grows into the fall in New England, so we partnered with Sharon, MA’s Ward’s Berry Farm.” We appreciate this gesture of sustainability and commend Harvard’s investment in local produce. At the same time, however, we believe it is necessary for HUDS to realize that squash is not a panacea and must be supplemented. Although the complaint may seem humorous, it is entirely valid: The sheer amount of squash served in the dining hall as a meal’s vegetable or vegetarian entrée is startling.

Rather than rely on solely squash as the veggie of choice, Harvard should continue to pursue alternative—yet still sustainable—vegetables. Harvard’s partnership with Ward’s Berry Farm should serve as a model for production of other sustainable foods. Besides squash, other vegetables such as cauliflower come in winter varieties that can weather a late harvest. As celebrated recently on the kiosks in the dining halls, locally grown tomatoes are a salient example of variety intersecting environmental conscientiousness, and such efforts should persist.

The squash problem begins with boredom caused by endless repetition—unfortunately, calling the vegetable candy roaster versus spaghetti does not change its essence—but it does not end there. Squash is not a magical food. As an additional vegetable or starch, squash provides an option to students who enjoy its smooth texture. It has no place, however, as a consistent replacement entree for vegetarians. A student who eats butternut squash soup at lunch does not necessarily want to consume red kuri squash with curry for dinner but is left with few alternatives. Especially because HUDS is also urging students to cut back on their meat intake, more vegetable options with additional nutritional value should be added.

This is not to say that we are anti-squash. Long Island cheese squash may be delicious, and we appreciate HUDS’ emphasis on utilizing the truly dynamic potential of the vegetable. If we are going to eat so much squash, such variety is crucial. Moreover, we are happy that squash is generally served alongside another vegetable option, and students who love squash are undoubtedly thrilled with its constant availability.

An overload of squash simply means that the produce from the farm is wasted as students tire of it and stop consuming it all. By diversifying the sustainable food grown and offered, Harvard could diminish excess produce.

Harvard has made great strides toward sustainability, and partnering with a farm was an innovative and effective idea. Such action, however, does not end with squash; HUDS must continue to expand its offerings to include more variety. If, as the banners in Tercentenary Theater proclaim, green really is the new crimson, then perhaps some sustainable greens could make more appearances on our dinner plates.