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St. Cloud State University
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'Bell' vacates campus
By Nyssa Dahlberg
Published:
Monday, October 6, 2003
Leaving the nest means students must survive with little help from home. Some students have to rely on Atwood to meet their hunger needs.
If you've been to Atwood lately you may have noticed a slight difference in meal selection this year. After seven years of business, Taco Bell has been replaced with Tortilla Fresca.
Rumors around SCSU have spread about its disappearance. Some thought a student might have gotten deathly ill after eating a bad taco or there was a lawsuit against Taco Bell for unjust treatment of their workers.
"I heard that there was a strike against Taco Bell because of unfair wages paid to the tomato pickers," SCSU student Leah Odegard said.
Director of Atwood Memorial Center, Margaret Vos, is able to put these rumors back into the closet.
"Every so many years we try to shake things up a bit, upgrade and improve," Vos said. "We wanted to give students who have been here four years something new and different that still meets their needs."
Students still wanted a southwest flavor so they did many taste tests with different companies and Tortilla Fresca seemed to be the best option.
"We had students try Tortilla Fresca over the summer and they all came back and said it was good but how much does it cost?" she said.
The overall price range compared with Taco Bell is relatively the same. Students however, may be getting a better value.
"ARAMARK (the food service vendor which provides all the food options in both Atwood and Garvey) feels they can have fresher products because whenever you have a franchise (like Taco Bell) they have to use a certain product line. They felt that Taco Bell's lettuce could have been fresher," Vos said. "Now with Tortilla Fresca, there aren't those kinds of rules and they are able to use the freshest product that comes through the door. ARAMARK feels students need fresh food."
Rumors about Taco Bell's unfair treatment of workers wasn't all wrong. Unfair wage to tomato pickers wasn't the main reason for the Taco Bell close, but may have had a slight effect.
"There is a group out there that is really questioning Taco Bell's treatment of its workers. I think that the tomato pickers were a concern. ARAMARK really does hear those things as they have 100 students working for them. They always know what students are saying," Vos said.
Tortilla Fresca seems to be a success for SCSU's student dining options. Student Kyle Pfannenstein said, "I'm happy that Taco Bell isn't there anymore. Tortilla Fresca tastes a lot better."
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