Hub provides healthy Be Well options

Move over greasy foods, and make room for newer, healthier options. Working with campus wellness coordinator Caroline Shugart, the Hub will soon offer healthier options as part of the Be Well program, which is designed to improve the health of employees and students on USU campus, said Alan Andersen, director of Food and Dining Services. “People have always wanted healthy foods,” Andersen said. “We’re seeing health costs rise so much. I think they’re really putting a drive to reduce our health care hosts on campus. We’re just part of this whole program.” Shugart, who was hired last October, said she approached Andersen about creating a variety of healthy food options in the Hub. Andersen said he liked the idea and has worked closely with Shugart in developing a new line of products to promote overall wellness. “I think wellness encompasses a lot of things,” Shugart said. “It’s easy to promote exercise and facilities. The other side that is really important is the nutrition aspect. It’s always nice to have healthy options for people. I’m not saying everyone has to be healthy and eat right, but those who want to should be supported. “The Hub always did this ‘fast food evil ogre that shoves fried food down your throat’ place in people’s minds. We wanted to give some options for health-conscious people.” At the crux of this healthy innovation is the upcoming opening of the new Road Runner Wraps, located where Taco Time used to be, said Amber Schoenfield, operations manger for the Hub. “It’s kind of the corner of our new Be Well options,” Schoenfield said. “We’re bringing in more whole wheat options. We’re working with our on-campus dietician to make sure there are more healthy choices.” When Road Runner Wraps opens, it will have an expanded menu that features healthier options, Schoenfield said. The traditional wraps will still be available, but a new line of smaller, more nutritiously balanced wraps, called Be Well wraps, will be offered, she said. Shugart said the Be Well wraps will be smaller with more vegetables, healthier dressings and placed inside whole wheat tortillas. And to top it all off, the Be Well wraps will be less expensive than the regular wraps, she said. Also in the works is a combo meal deal with a healthy twist that would allow customers to add on healthy options like fruit and yogurt to create a Be Well combo. “It’s really satisfying, but the idea’s different,” Shugart said. But Road Runner Wraps won’t be the only Be Well option at the Hub. By early February there should be an entire line of Be Well products that are all examined and approved by dietitians, Andersen said. Some of the new Be Well choices will be healthier options at Hogi Yogi, some variations on Taco Time recipes and multiple options at the salad bar, Schoenfield said. The salad bar, which is currently in place in the Hub, will be supplied with more vegetables and low-calorie dressings, Shugart said. Shugart said part of the reason many people don’t eat healthy is because it can often be expensive. She said this is due in part to the government subsidizing high fructose corn syrup, a common sweetener in many unhealthy food options, creating a system where “all the food that’s cheap isn’t good for us.” “People are always having to make these choices: something is cheap, unhealthy and tasty or something that is healthy and expensive. We choose the path of least resistance,” Shugart said. “We may pay later, but it’s a long time in the future. It’s hard to think 10 or 20 years down the road. If we can make healthy food a little cheaper, we might be able to drive demand that way.” To change the trend of healthy food being expensive, Shugart said she is working with Andersen to create incentives and rewards for eating healthy. Shugart said while nothing has been solidified yet, some possible options would be to give students discounts on future products when they purchase a certain amount of healthy food. “(Andersen is) doing us a great favor by doing this. It’s a win-win situation,” Shugart said. “I think parents are relieved to find out that campuses do have healthy options.” Shoenfield said she hopes this program creates more awareness of healthy food and will set a trend toward healthier food options among other universities. -seth.h@aggiemail.usu.edu