Many students have noticed the main change that was made to the marketplace over the summer; Pepsi has arrived at UNH. So the question is why the change to Pepsi from Coke? And what other changes have come along with it? The Charger Bulletin sat down with Lawrence Lisborg, General Manager, Bill Ostrowski, Director of Operations, John Gervasi, Executive Chef, and Jennifer Guillotte, Marketing Specialist of Sodexo to find out.
The switch was the university’s doing, and the outcome has been extremely positive. Switching to Pepsi has given students more choices for their drinks and Gatorade has been a huge success thus far.Along with this switch, there is also now a Sushi bar available in the Marketplace during lunch to give students the option of having fresh sushi made right in front of them instead. This was done as a response to the student’s complaints about the previous company not having fresh enough products.
Another change in the Marketplace is the MyZone station. MyZone is a station that includes a freezer, refrigerator, microwave, toaster and cutting board for gluten free products. This area is dedicated to students with food allergies to help them avoid any cross contamination with other foods. It has a full variety of lactaid free milk, gluten free breads, wraps, muffins and more. A student can get whatever meats or other sandwich items they want from the deli station and bring it over to MyZone to make their own gluten free wrap or sandwich without any concern about contaminants.
The Mindful program is another change that begins on September 15. This program aims to teach students about the variety of choices available with more flavor and satisfying portions, and that are healthier for them. It is a national program run by Sodexo which will feature different Mindful choices every day.
Along with these changes, the Marketplace makes sure to use as much healthy local foods as they can. They have another program coming up the week of September 18, where they will show all the local foods they serve. Sodexo is very involved in the local sustainability initiative. They are concerned with not only the use of local foods, but also with all food waste being composited to be used at a pig farm, and turning all the fryer oil into biodiesel fuel.
All of these changes are good for the university community and encourages everyone to be healthier. If any students or faculty members have opinions or ideas throughout the year, Sodexo is happy to listen and will change things as needed.
If a student has any dietary needs that need to be met, they can meet with a dining services faculty member who will help make sure they are taken care of right away. Comment cards are available at all dining locations.
They also have a SodexoTwitter, Facebook or Instagram page, and can be contacted at [email protected]. Students are also welcomed to attend meetings for the Food Service Committee, which meets weekly. The more students that take time to go to these meeting, the better the service will be on campus.
