We have heard a lot in the past week about the changes to food accessibility on campus. While the current options seem to be, in general, more expensive, less accessible, and less healthy, I think it would be a mistake to forget those options at McGill that continue to offer cheap, nutritious, and sustainable options.
In The Daily’s editorial piece last week (“Hungry for food accessibility,” Editorial, September 15), the efforts of student-run organizations on campus were mentioned casually without giving real credit to the hard work of volunteers and employees. Worse, Snax Cafe was not even mentioned.
Customers and employees of Snax will tell you that the cafe fills all the criteria listed in last week’s piece: locally sourced, reasonably priced, healthy options in a convenient location on the first floor of Leacock. Snax operates to break even, so each and every item is sold at slightly above cost (with the surplus going to staff wages). The past year has seen the cafe expand its selection, with vegetarian, vegan, and organic options being introduced. Finally, Snax is entirely run by students, and has successfully served the McGill community for years.
This is not intended to act as an advertisement for Snax, but as a reminder that healthy, cheap options exist at McGill, and should not be overlooked. If students at this university are truly upset with the latest restaurants being installed on campus, they should continue to eat at places like Snax, so that these types of organizations can continue to operate, and offer the prices, nutrition, and convenience expected by the McGill community.
– Emma Meldrum, Assistant Manager AUS SNAX