Sodexo is an international company that prides itself on high-quality dining and feeding students what they need to succeed. However, many students would disagree.
“It’s poison,” said Soojin Skarajunsky, a second-year strategic communication major at DU. “I had a friend find rocks in her potatoes.”
Skarajunsky says that she tries to avoid the dining halls at all costs. Although, she doesn’t mind going to the Nagel Hall Market because the food is cooked in front of students and is fresh.
Olivia Lokman, a second-year at DU majoring in psychology, also prefers the Nagel Hall Market because they show the nutrition facts which allow her to pick out exactly what she needs.
“It’s easier to trust what your eating because it does have the nutrition facts,” Stated Lokman.
DU offers many nutrition options that cater to students with food allergies. However, outside of helping students with restricted diets eat, they aren’t as transparent or consistent with the regular food they put out.
“They don’t put effort in what they’re serving to the kids and cater to our needs in terms of nutrition,” Lokman stated.
DU has noticed that students need more options and have added specific areas and refrigerators along with Simple Servings at Nagel Hall Market with special food for those who can’t eat what’s normally offered. They also try to offer healthier options for those who want to make better dietary decisions.
The dining halls also offer vegan and vegetarian options, however, these sections are small and the options are limited. Sodexo offers dairy-free milk and gluten-free bread as well. However, these are usually mixed in with the rest of the food, along with vegan and vegetarian options, so students have to hunt down what they need.
“There are very little dairy-free options and it’s hard to find the sustenance I need,” said Sierra Barnicle, a second-year psychology major at DU.
Sodexo has noticed this and has been advertising their “mindful” diets. “Mindful” is a program that helps students make healthy choices in both diet and lifestyle. These options are integrated into the dining halls are marked as part of the mindful diet.
To further promote healthy eating, DU dining has a nutrition calculator on their online menu. Students can curate a menu and then see how much total nutrition they are getting for the day.
Rachel Buchler, a second-year geography major at DU, has noticed that even the healthier food is also majorly lacking.
“If there was a better salad bar that had actual cooked vegetables, that would be cool,” Buchler said.
Sodexo has noticed the need for knowledge as to what people are eating. They have been advertising their app “Bite” that allows students to read the nutrition facts for everything they serve as well as what’s on the menu at each dining location.
The MFJS Reporter -- Winter 2020 T-R 