No Coke for USU
After 12 years of being a Coca-Cola campus, things are going to look a little more blue around USU come spring semester.
PepsiCo Inc. won the bid against Coke in a recent request for proposal – or RFP – put out by the university, according to Alan Andersen, executive director of Dining Services. Pepsi products will replace Coke products in USU’s dining areas.
“The Coke contract ends Nov. 30,” Andersen said. “We’re going to kind of have a lag time between then and when the Pepsi contract begins.”
Between Nov. 30 and the start of Pepsi’s contract Dec. 18, Coke products and equipment will gradually be removed and Pepsi will start to install their equipment on campus, according to Andersen.
However, most of these changes will take place after students head home for the holidays.
“Some changes will occur before the students leave for Christmas break,” Andersen said. “Most changes will occur, at least in Dining Services, after the students are gone…so when they come back, all the changes will be in place. It minimizes the impact on the students that way.”
Pepsi will cover the costs of installing their advertisements and equipment, according to Andersen. He said Dining Services will be doing some promotions to make it exciting to have Pepsi on campus, and the money for this will come from the Dining Services marketing fund.
Pepsi won the bid in part because they offered more money to USU than Coke did, Andersen said. Pepsi will donate more than $500,000 to be used for scholarships over the course of the contract.
“We’re really excited about that, and that’s something we didn’t have with Coke. We didn’t have any scholarship money at all with Coke,” Andersen said. “Right now the plan is to provide scholarships for living in central campus for up to 50 students every year.”
Pepsi products are nothing new to campus. Both Coke and Pepsi products are sold in the Quickstop on the first floor of the Taggart Student Center. However, when the new contract takes effect, the two brands will not coexist. Only Pepsi products will be sold on campus, according to Andersen.
Some changes in products include Rockstar energy drinks replacing Monster, Aquafina and Aquavista bottled water replacing Desani and Gatorade replacing Powerade, according to Andersen.
“I’m pretty excited about it,” said Chris O’Neal of USU’s track and field team. “I think it’s really cool because I’ve always been more of a Gatorade person compared to a Powerade person.”
“Some other things that they’ll be able to bring in are all the Starbucks products,” Andersen said. “We have them in the Quickstop now, they’ll be available everywhere. Things like Sunny Delight is also another product that will become available, their juices are all Ocean Spray, which is a great product…it’ll be a good change.”
Pepsi does not have the rights to sell Dr Pepper in the bottle or the can, but Andersen said the soda will still be available in soda fountains across campus.
Some students may not approve of the switch in soft drinks.
“That’s the way with everything,” Anderse
n said. “You’ve got people who like Nike better than Adidas. Everyone has their own preferences, but we still need to do what’s in the best interest of Utah State University and the students of Utah State University.”
@JungblutEric