Editorial: Adding food trucks to on-campus dining options

The Leonard Carmichael Society, Tufts’ umbrella group for community service, ran a Food Truck week from March 28 to Apr. 1. During these five days, different food trucks parked outside the upper campus center, with meals and snacks available for students to peruse. The purpose of the week was to raise money for the Somerville Homeless Coalition, a local organization that offers housing assistance, emergency shelters and food assistance to residents, as 10 percent of proceeds from the Food Truck week were donated to the organization. The success of the Food Truck week implies the need for authorizing more local food trucks to be present on campus more regularly to expand students' dining options and to support local enterprises.

Food Truck week was immensely popular among Tufts students. For students, especially upperclassmen, who do not have an extensive meal plan, the food truck would be an excellent way to get a between-class lunch or snack. Some students often turn to sites such as GrubHub and Seamless to get food delivered, but getting takeaways from on-campus food trucks would help students save on the delivery cost.

While the newly-revamped Commons provides a selection of sandwiches and salads, having food trucks on campus would give Tufts the opportunity to provide a greater variety of food to students. During LCS Food Truck week, trucks owned by Tenoch and Bon Me, specializing in Mexican and Vietnamese cuisine respectively, added more to the regular day-to-day available food options at Tufts-owned cafeterias. Allowing food trucks to park on campus would not only let students get access to a greater variety of dishes, snacks and desserts but also provide healthier alternatives to students with special diets, which have become more and more common, such as vegan, gluten-free or sugar-free.

Moreover, allowing more food trucks to park at various locations on campus during weekend nights will help prevent overcrowding at The Commons. There are often long lines at The Commons during late night dining. Moreover, misbehaviors by drunk students are also often reported. Letting food trucks park on locations near Greek houses will encourage party-goers to eat more at night. Eating a heavy meal before drinking allows alcohol to be absorbed more slowly, and thus the body's blood alcohol content will be kept low. Giving students incentives to fill their stomachs with more food on party nights will protect them from getting severely intoxicated.

Providing more business to local entrepeneurs will help heal strained relations with the cities of Medford and Somerville, upon which Tufts has had a major impact, both positively and negatively. Breaking down borders between the university and the community will help both groups.

Therefore, authorizing more food trucks on campus on weekdays and weekend nights will improve students' dining experience and promote a healthier lifestyle on campus. If the school administration decides to explore this approach, students' preferences should be taken into account regarding their desired types of food, the price range and the locations where food trucks should be parked. The appeal of on-campus food trucks is clear in terms of diversity, quality and convenience and this new addition would be a huge benefit for the entire campus.