RHA resolution encourages weekly trayless dining

In order to reduce waste, conserve water and encourage healthy eating habits, the Residence Hall Association General Assembly  has passed Trayless Tuesdays, an initiative where trays are removed from dining halls one day a week, at the Wright Quad food court and Gresham Food Court in Foster Quad.

The resolution was passed on Sept. 19. 

Mary Roper, a sophomore and RHA Director of Environmentalism, is in charge of the project for RHA.

Roper said RPS has approved a two-step process for Trayless Tuesdays, a social awareness campaign and the removal of some trays, depending on the student response.

“It’s a sustainable act that could save the University a lot of money in the long run,” Roper said.

Roper said Trayless Tuesdays will have a positive impact on the environment.
“There’s a big environmental impact because you have detergents, grease and food waste going into the local environment,” Roper said.

Read Center’s Landes Dining Room eliminated trays in September 2010, according to an Indiana Daily Student story from 2010, and Edmondson Dining Room at Collins LLC did so shortly before Read.

Although IU has no current plans to completely remove trays from campus, other universities, such as Iowa State University and University of Minnesota, have gone completely trayless in all their dining halls.

Roper said she is not sure of a definite date when Trayless Tuesdays will start. However, she expects them to start before the end of the semester.

Although students had mixed reactions about the initiative, they said they see the reasoning behind Trayless Tuesdays.

Freshman Haven Wegesin said she understands the concept, but doesn’t agree with it.

“It’s not realistic at all, from a student’s perspective, with the ways the food courts are set up,” Wegesin said. “I wouldn’t be able to carry all my food.”

However, RPS Dining Services Registered Dietitian Rachel Noirot said Trayless Tuesdays encourages the concept of intuitive eating.

“If you don’t have a tray and just have a plate, you’ll fill up that one plate and might actually be full after one plate,” Noirot said. “If you have a tray, you might take more food than you actually need.”

She said she believes it will take students time to adjust to Trayless Tuesdays.

“If it’s marketed really strongly ... the students will be understanding,” Noirot said.