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Oxford with campus leftovers

By Kellie Copolla, For The Miami Student

That second hot dog you might turn down at a Miami University sporting event may soon feed a hungry member of the Oxford community.

Miami University sophomore Lauren Gottschalk is starting a program that will take leftover hot food from the concession stands after Miami University sporting events and transport it to a local organization that will serve the food to members of the community.

The psychology major from Dayton, Ohio, has worked for Carillon Catering since the beginning of this semester. She said the amount of discarded food at the end of catering events bothered her.

"I thought it was ridiculous," she said. "Every time I'm at work I am constantly reminded that perfectly good food is being thrown away."

She came up with a project proposal that would provide an alternative use for leftover food while benefitting the community.

According to the United States Census Bureau, 48.5 percent of Oxford's residents between 2008 and 2012 were below the poverty level. Gottschalk thinks her project can make a difference. She hopes to gain support and turn her initiative into a student organization.

Gottschalk proposed this plan to Jon Brubacher, Director of Procurement and Purchasing, Nancy Heidtman, senior director of Dining and Culinary Support Services and Eric Yung, director of Catering and Special Services. They agreed to lend support as long as Gottschalk takes care of the planning and maintaining.

Gottschalk faces several obstacles in making her project a reality. Yung noted that Gottschalk's project is unique because she's donating hot, perishable items.

But many details need to be worked out. Brubacher said that because the food is perishable, Miami University Dining Services are liable. Gottschalk must think about how to transport hot, precooked food from the concession stand to the receiving venue to ensure proper sanitation and handling, as well as efficiency.

Brubacher said this means Gottschalk also has to find packaging that will keep the food at an appropriate temperature. Additionally, Brubacher said, she has to find a well-equipped receiving venue that can store, keep and serve the food.

Gottschalk contracted Oxford Bible Fellowship, a church located at 800 South Maple Ave. According to Yvonne Van Bibber, director of connections at Oxford Bible Fellowship, the group agreed to accept and serve the food donations.

They are waiting for more information from Gottschalk such as the amount of leftover food that will be donated and how often. This presents another issue.

"Our goal is zero [leftovers]," Brubacher said. "But we know in reality that won't happen."

According to the inventory record from the Aug. 30 Miami University football game, there were 58 hot dogs and 94 soft pretzels leftover at the end of the game.

Yung said it is difficult to predict the amount of leftover food because it depends on factors like the popularity of the event. He encouraged Gottschalk to test her plan during the three most popular sports seasons: football, hockey and basketball.

Gottschalk said she hopes to set up a Food Recovery Network chapter on Miami campus to assist with her project. Food Recovery Network works to fight waste by redistributing leftover food from campus dining establishments.

The Food Recovery Network provides consultation and resources for motivated individuals that open up chapters. Sara Glassman, the director of new member support and communications, said that to open up a chapter, a student must sign an agreement and report to a new chapter coordinator.

"I feel like Miami is a bubble and Oxford just surrounds it," Gottschalk said.

She said she hopes her chapter will be successful: word will spread and students will get involved in her project and reach out to the community in need.

Those involved seem optimistic about the future of Gottschalk's project. Brubacher said many students in the past have tried to do what she is doing, but abandoned the project due to lack of time and planning.

"She seems to be the most promising of the students we've worked with," Brubacher said.

Gottschalk hopes to have a trial run by the end of this semester, and to troubleshoot and expand the project in the semesters to come.