5 things: College collecting names, numbers from those accessing dining halls for contact tracing

Each Friday Food Management compiles a list that highlights five things you probably missed in the onsite foodservice news that week and why you should care about them.

Here’s your list for the week of November 2:

Customers paying with cash or credit cards will now need to provide their name and phone number when entering Western Michigan University dining halls following an executive order from Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer requiring all restaurants in the state to take the name and phone number of guests to aid in contact tracing. Students using meal plans or Dining Dollars are exempt from the requirement as their information is already recorded and timestamped when swiping their card. Those who refuse will be denied entry and directed to find options at a Grab’n Go location instead.

Read more: WMU Dining Services taking names and phone numbers of diners

A large food hall called JACX&CO that will house six restaurants and a café is scheduled to open Nov. 11 in the JACX, a new 26-story high rise office building in Long Island City. The venue occupies some 11,000 square feet on the building’s ground floor and has seating for 215, though only a quarter of that is currently open due to COVID-related social distancing restrictions. JACX&CO initially will be open weekdays between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. with takeout and delivery available.

Related:5 coronavirus things: Students petition for meal plan refund after only dining hall closes

Read more: New Food Hall to Open Inside Office Tower in Long Island City Next Week

To combat the spread of coronavirus, University of Maryland Dining Services implemented a takeout program at the beginning of the fall semester using compostable carryout boxes that are made of 100% recycled materials. However, it seems many students are simply throwing the boxes away rather than saving them for recycling.

Read more: UMD dining halls’ carryout boxes are compostable, but many students are throwing them out

Tulsa Public Schools in Oklahoma is beginning weekend meal service for all children 18 and under. Three days’ worth of breakfast, lunch and supper meals will now be available for pickup every Friday free of charge to provide children meals for the weekend.

Read more: Tulsa Public Schools expands meal service to cover weekends

Three dining venues and two recreational facilities at Northern Michigan University were closed Nov. 4 following a surge in campus COVID cases. The Temaki, Fieras and Smoothie King locations are looking at tentatively reopening the week of Nov. 9 while the PEIF Rec Center and Wildcat Fit Zone won’t reopen until at least the week of Nov. 16th.

Related:5 coronavirus things: Free/reduced meal applications drop despite growing poverty

Read more: PEIF & Fit Zone close along with campus restaurants after surge of new COVID-19 cases

Bonus: How Houston’s MD Anderson Cancer Center copes with coronavirus

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]