First-year biology student Becca Davis was vegan for two years before coming to USC. She became a vegetarian this semester when she didn't see a lot of vegan options.
“When I got here and I realized that it wasn’t going to be functional for me to be vegan on a meal plan, I had to start to slowly go towards vegetarianism,” she said.
She was sick and unable to attend her first two days of classes because of her switch to vegetarianism.
First-year journalism student Leah DeFreitas is the vice president of Care-olina Animal Advocates, a club that advocates for animal rights throughout campus and discusses veganism. DeFreitas said when the restaurants in dining halls have vegan options, the dining staff is sometimes not properly trained to handle vegan foods. Cross-contamination can be common, for example, cheese can mix with other foods and can make a vegan ill.
DeFreitas is a vegan, and said she often struggles to find adequate vegan options throughout the campus’ dining halls.
“There’s never tofu available, never tempeh available, the soy milk and almond milk options are always down or not available,” she said.
Some upperclassmen vegans purchase their own food and cook within their own kitchens, but some freshmen do not have that option in traditional or suite style dorms. DeFreitas lives in Capstone, and said she often eats a granola bar for meals.
Aramark is the University of South Carolina's food service provider, and the Care-olina Animal Advocates met with the company in early September to discuss the lack of vegan options in the dining halls.
“Aramark is not an evil entity, I don’t despise Aramark," said Sophia Storlazzi, Care-olina Animal Advocates' president and third-year public health student. "I think the issue mostly is the pace at which they make adjustments.”
Tanya Miceli, a Carolina Food Co. dietitian, said Aramark began providing vegan options in July 2017, when they became the food service contractor. Since then, it has expanded its options.
“The number of vegan items offered is location-dependent as we have less control over menus of national brands," Miceli said in an email. "Generally 10-15% of options are vegan.”
Cafe Verde supervisor Bridgett Warren said Cafe Verde is discussing the lack of vegan options and working on creating new ones.
Currently, the dining options across campus include vegan cheese, vegan proteins, vegan entrees, vegan sides and soy milk. Twisted Taco, Cafe Verde and Spice Kitchen are popular places for vegan meals, and Tea Leaves offers vegan entrees.