Food Literacy Reps Field Complaints

While Harvard University Dining Services has hired 14 undergraduates to serve as Food Literacy Representatives with the goal of educating students about its sustainability initiatives, thus far students have been more interested in airing their dining grievances.

After a survey in the HUDS 2008 Sustainability Report noted that students lack fundamental knowledge about environmental sustainability, the representative positions were created as part of the HUDS food literacy project to help create programs based on students’ environmental interests.

But some student representatives say they have been fielding a lot of complaints unrelated to sustainability.

“One of the reasons I got involved is because there is a disconnect,” said Cassie B. Snow ’10, Kirkland House’s Food Literacy Representative. “HUDS does a good job for the most part but students don’t know how to get in touch and have their concerns heard.”

Snow and Lewis M. Ward ’11, Winthrop House’s representative, both cited the recent elimination of nutritional information cards as a source of discontent in their houses and said that panel discussions have addressed the possibility of reinstating them in some form.

However, while student representatives are able to pass along complaints to HUDS, HUDS Executive Director Ted A. Mayer said that they will not replace House dining hall managers, who normally field complaints from students.

“It is important to recognize the difference between liking or not liking a dish and what it means to be sustainable,” Mayer said.

HUDS Assistant Director of Marketing Crista Martin hesitated to acknowledge communication problems between students and HUDS, but said that “last year’s menu questions or concerns would have been less alarming or less intense had there been a representative program.”

While she said the program is partially about communication, she said she believes the main purpose is to “continue the effort to help students be closer to their food in ways they are interested in.”

The “disconnect” between students and HUDS can be seen in students lack of knowledge regarding HUDS sustainability efforts, according to Ward.

“HUDS is already doing a lot toward sustainability and the food literacy project is great but most people on campus are not aware of it,” he said. For example, he said students may have noticed the wide variety of squash in dining halls this fall, but might not know about HUDS’ contract with a local farm that grows 40,000 pounds of squash specifically for Harvard.

“We help students on campus learn what’s going and get students more involved with the food literacy project when a lot of them don’t know it exits.”

Food Literacy Representatives will help address these issues through field trips to local farms and events like Tuesday’s sustainability dinner, which will feature a locally grown dinner followed by movies that HUDS hopes will spark discussions about sustainability.