Campus ID News
Card, mobile credential, payment and security
FEATURED
PARTNERS
togocontainer 1

Boston College adds reusable, to-go containers in dining

Andrew Hudson   ||   Aug 17, 2018  ||   ,

Boston College Dining Services is set to provide reusable to-go containers for use in campus dining halls this semester. The introduction of the reusable containers is just one of a series of sustainability efforts taking root at the college.

As reported by BC Heights, the new program is intended to provide an environmentally friendly alternative to disposable paper and plastic containers currently in use, as well as reduce the amount lost cutlery and china from dining facilities.

Julianne Stelmaszyk, manager of regional and sustainable food systems for BC Dining, says that some 60% of the food purchased in BC dining halls is taken to-go. Additionally, the last academic year alone saw the BC student body consume some 3.5 million plastic utensils, 700,000 straws, and 360,000 coffee cups.

It was decided, then, that a disposable to-go container program would be the best solution to attack the sustainability issue on both fronts. BC Dining was initially worried that students would not return the to-go containers in a timely fashion to claim new ones, so it looked to other universities for inspiration.

BC Dining reportedly found some inspiration in Virginia Tech and its initiative with OZZI. Specifically, BC honed in on the container return process and the automated kiosk units that the solution leverages. The college ultimately decided that the cost of each kiosk at $13,999, along with the roughly $100 of maintenance per year and separate purchases of OZZI-compatible containers, was cost prohibitive.

Expensive hardware aside, BC recognized the need to track to-go containers to ensure that students were returning them for clean replacements. And crucially, students that lose or otherwise choose not to return a box are then charged to their student account for the price of the box.

BC Dining ultimately landed on a more basic return process that takes a manual approach to the automated kiosk formula of solutions like OZZI.

BC students and faculty buy into the program at a price of $8.00. Early adopters in the program -- within the first two weeks at designated Green2Go tables -- will be given two initial tokens. Students then go through the food service line and request a G2G box. To complete the transaction, students return to the dining hall register, and present a token in exchange for the container.

After the initial transaction, BC has implemented a token system for the containers that sees students return their to-go box to the dining hall in exchange for another token in the form of a carabiner keychain. Students and faculty can enter back into the program at any time for another $8.00, or if they lose a container or token.

|| TAGS:
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter

RECENT POSTS

May 26, 23 / ,

Penn State adds mobile ordering to campus app

Penn State has added a mobile ordering feature to its comprehensive campus mobile app, Penn State Go. The Penn State Eats Mobile function is available for use by students on the flagship University Park campus, as well as across the university's Commonwealth Campuses.
May 26, 23 / ,

NAU leverages delivery robots to support late-night dining

Northern Arizona is leveraging Starship delivery robots and the mobile ordering app in a clever way to prop up late night dining, and putting a twist on the ghost kitchen concept. The university has launched its Hole in the Wall dining window that now serves either pickup or robot delivery for students by offering a number of dining concepts all from a single, concession-style window.
May 25, 23 / ,

HID's Technology Partner Program helps companies develop mobile solutions

Trusted identity solutions provider, HID Global, has announced its HID Origo Technology Partner Program, the company’s first program dedicated to partners with a focus on mobile technologies. The Origo Technology Partner Program is designed to help technology partners by providing the ideal platform for organizations to design, test, and market products that integrate with HID Origo via APIs and SDKs.
CIDN logo reversed
The only publication dedicated to the use of campus cards, mobile credentials, identity and security technology in the education market. CampusIDNews – formerly CR80News – has served more than 6,500 subscribers for more than two decades.
Twitter

Join us, @NACCUorg, and @TouchNet to explore how campus card programs can successfully navigate the sales and procurement process. Join the webinar on June 6, 2 pm EDT. https://go.touchnet.com/l/652093/2022-05-18/lsndq

Webinar: Learn how the University of Arizona uses campus cards, mobile ordering, kiosks, lockers, and robots to revolutionize campus dining. April 7, 2-2:30 EDT. Register Now at https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/7821245544009488910?source=campus-id

Load More...
Contact
CampusIDNews is published by AVISIAN Publishing
315 E. Georgia St.
Tallahassee, FL 32301
www.AVISIAN.com[email protected]
Use our contact form to submit tips, corrections, or questions to our team.
©2023 CampusIDNews. All rights reserved.