Student Run Food Options

            With the planned growth at UCSD involving greater numbers of students, faculty and staff there will certainly be an increased need for food services in the future.  At UCSD we have a fairly small selection of foods, often defaulting to the unhealthy fast foods offered at Price Center today.  With the lack of variety in terms of different choices of food along with a serious lack of healthy alternatives to the foods served today (greasy Chinese, fatty pizza and Mexican foods).  With these limited number of alternatives comes a greater number of students bringing there own food or eating back at home after class.  UCSD, being an efficient friendly place seems to be missing out on a large and growing market of healthy alternative food choices.  Along with the absence of choices is the overwhelming percentage of huge corporations getting their chains on campus.  Wendy’s, Panda Express, Round Table Pizza and Subway are a few.  UCSD needs more student involvement and community.  Student run food options are a perfect way to solve all of these issues.  Not only do they bring a sense of community and belonging but by having more food options on campus we would make more people stay on campus during lunch and after their classes are finished, rather then jumping on the first bus and leaving. 

            I propose opening healthy alternative student run food options.  This could be permanent buildings or a multiple food cart system with access to a kitchen for preparations and storage in refrigerators.  Many in the UCSD community become entrepreneurs and what better way to learn the ropes of owning a business then doing it on campus.  The Che Café was once a place like this, but was not maintained at acceptable levels.  I believe this was because of the lack of belonging and respect for the restaurant.  If people were given an opportunity to start there own business in such a space there would defiantly be takers.

-Ricky Aubrey

raubrey@ucsd.edu