By Elizabeth Bacharach
Opinions Editor
With the closing of the 130-year-old Wonderbread Plant in Jamaica, Queens, it becomes clear that the age of white bread is coming to a close. You no longer see hungry Jane delightfully devouring her delicious piece of white toast because Jane’s mommy now knows the truth. Why eat white wheat choices—toast, pasta, etc.— when one can eat whole wheat, an equally delicious, yet healthier, option?
I would not entirely label the University as an unhealthy school; there are plenty of “good-for-you” options in each of our dining facilities. But, it is clear that the Bostwick Marketplace is still stuck in the white wheat wonder days of the 1970s. As a first-year, I frequent the Bostwick Marketplace often, looking for healthier options. I come from a health-crazed family—one that is considerably carbohydrate conscious, where we eat pasta once every two weeks and have bread at dinner on rare occasions, I have not seen a product made of white wheat since I was three. It is clear that whole wheat items are extremely popular as well as frequently consumed. So, why is it almost impossible to find whole wheat edibles in our cafeteria? Though I realize that there are a few choices, such as the whole wheat toast that you have to dig to find at the deli or bread counters, I am fairly perplexed by the lack of whole wheat pasta.
Upon entering the Bostwick Marketplace one has to practically grab a backpack and become a veritable Dora the Explorer to uncover the healthy, whole wheat provisions. My friends and I wander, walking laps around the Bostwick Marketplace searching for the food we would find in our pantries at home. But, we are lost, practically asking our peers for help and recommendations of what to consume. But what to eat is not the problem; as I admit, we are sometimes picky. The real issue is when you crave that true, at home comfort food called pasta.
I have repeatedly desired a hearty pasta dish at school but have yet to actually consume one, because I have yet to discover whole-wheat pasta, dare I say a staple in many households these days. As the months pass by and I have my daily stare down with the white wheat pasta, I still have yet to fulfill my craving. I often ask myself, how could our school be so behind in acknowledging the simple and desirable health benefits of whole wheat pasta, as well as other edibles? So here I am, not hungry and unaware of health benefits Jane, on the search for my whole wheat products, especially pasta. Bostwick Marketplace, do you hear me?