Lunches for All, Including Vegetarians

By Ritsika Dutta

Living in such a diverse country like the United States, it is easy to have one food item of many different varieties, but difficult to find any alternative for just one.

Many of you are not aware of the difficulties of finding food that fits all the needs of vegetarians. While there are vegetarian or vegan options for students, those who are religiously restricted from eating or touching specific foods make the situation more complicated.

I am not calling people out for eating meat; instead. I’m calling out for support for those who can’t easily eat just any food.

Think about how many of your friends are hoping for a better selection of food options for vegans and vegetarians, rather than just a bowl of salad for lunch during their tiring school day.

Society says we need to start a change with the students who are growing to be able to do something for the future. That starts with school: How about making more lunches available to those with different personal, health or religious wants and needs?

I’m sure if you buy lunch you know how the food is, and if you don’t buy lunch, well, you’ve seen it. I’m sure you have also heard the exclamation “We need better lunches!” too many times to want to continue reading this article.

But this is not just about the better lunches; it’s about more options for every student.

Currently, there are two lunch lines with four meal options. Why can’t the second line be for those who are vegetarians/vegans?

And the tortilla chips and salsa I had back at the beginning of my sophomore year doesn’t cut it. The chips had been there for a couple of lunches and were cold and stale, and the salsa was not okay to eat.

Many students do not eat breakfast and need a healthy lunch with options for them. Data collected by the School Nutrition Association concludes that 29.6 million children get school lunches each school day, and 60% of those kids do not have breakfast.

So many students in Barrington play sports; they need nutrients. Well, vegan students need a good lunch, too.

Now that we are paying for school lunches again, how about better options with the money Chartwells is earning? There need to be options for everyone: religion, allergies, and more.

In New Jersey, my elementary and middle schools had lunches that were $2.50 with free fruits. Snacks were also available for 75 cents. I was able to buy lunch whenever I needed it, knowing there would be a vegetarian option and a filling one at that. Many of my friends were vegetarians, but we were still able to have lunch at school without hesitation.

I’m really hoping for Barrington High School to be a community where all students are able to have a good lunch.