The article “Without Cafeteria Trays, Colleges Cut Water Use, and Calories” (The New York Times, April 29, 2009) describes a private market response to a negative extendability. While a government policy response to such market failures is often necessary and desirable, progressive individuals and institutions can take steps on their own to mitigate these problems and to develop public interest in improving government policy.
Many colleges across the United States have reduced the use of cafeteria trays in their dining halls. Some colleges have eliminated the use of the trays altogether. Although aesthetic considerations alone sometimes drive this change, the elimination of the cafeteria trays brings about several additional benefits. Water usage falls as there are no longer trays to wash. Food waste plummets as students cannot load up the large trays with anything in the food line that catches their eye. The weight gain that often accompanies the move from home to college seems less likely to occur when students must limit the food they carry to their tables to the amount that can fit on one plate.
There is one important drawback to the elimination of cafeteria trays. Students become more likely to make more than one trip to the food line during the course of a meal. The increased traffic through the food lines takes more time. This negative side effect becomes even more problematic when congested food lines require more time for each trip. Although the multiple trips through the food line do increase the exercise achieved by otherwise sedentary students, the time costs to students and faculty members represent an important cost associated with the move away from using cafeteria trays. This cost must be weighed against the benefits of eliminating trays as other colleges consider making the change.