Love affair with fries

By: Prarthana Bhat

Every month of the academic year, I find myself attempting to create an ideal meal plan where my main focus would be cooking a wide spread of high nutritional value lunches and dinners. The reality is that convenience holds a higher priority than the quality of the meals consumed. Being a full-time student who is constantly aiming to achieve a balance amongst academics and dietary preferences, convenient food attractions such as La Piazza or Centro have resulted in a deficit in my health and my wallet.

The aforementioned eateries alongside other alternatives across the map provide appealing menus for their everyday meals in terms of convenience. However, as a concerned and motivated health activist, these food options do not fulfill the nutritional requirements for an average person.

La Piazza is a sustainable and inclusive food system with several booths that cater to the fast-paced lifestyle of students. Referring to the menu hoisted up at Creation X, I noticed a classic take on the “all-American diet,” which includes items such as hamburgers, grilled cheese sandwiches and chicken fingers. Most of these advertised items are mainly processed and contain a high volume of sodium, trans fats and calories. Students who prefer to indulge in a well-balanced diet are told that they would be accommodated for, but examples like these demonstrate that the food services on campus are not upholding their side of the deal.

While we have some access to fresh produce through Mac Farmstand, they are only present from June to October. A viable solution to this dilemma would be for the various cafeterias on campus to collaborate with Mac Farmstand more often to access fresh produce supplied by local farmers. Access to local vegetables would lead to fresh meals prepared daily, which are not preserved and served with accordance to Canada’s Food Guidelines.

Hopefully in the upcoming years, we will notice a positive change in the food options available on campus that will sponsor a hearty way of life and serve an end to our love affairs with fast foods.

At Trent University, a student-led non-profit vegetarian initiative called the Seasoned Spoon is a prime example of how we can promote and enforce a healthier lifestyle and environment on school grounds. Along with preparing fresh meals, the Seasoned Spoon hosts weekly culinary classes to guide students through a path of healthy eating and cooking. They also upload recipes of prepared dishes on their website, making it accessible to students who rely on independent cooking on day-to-day basis. A full café might be excessive budget-wise, but the other objectives of the initiative seem obtainable enough as part of a new or existing service.

The Good Food Box, initiated by McGill University and included in Chukky Ibe’s presidential platform, is another source of inspiration that McMaster should be paying attention to.

Ibe proposed cooperation between Mac Bread Bin and Mac Farmstand to hand deliver grocery boxes of various sizes to student households around McMaster in order to reduce the number of trips a regular off-campus student makes to the grocery store.

With so many opportunities and options available, the university and McMaster Students Union should push past the variety of content available on campus and aim to be a healthier and flourishing unit.

Hopefully in the upcoming years, we will notice a positive change in the food options available on campus that will sponsor a hearty way of life and serve an end to our love affairs with fast food.