Student At Iowa’s Luther College Calls For Vending Machine Boycott

April 16, 2015

A student at Luther College located in Decorah, IA, is calling for a boycott of campus vending machines. In a letter to the college’s student newspaper Chips, Jeffrey Lackmann (‘18) calls into question the inefficiency of campus vending machines, claiming that the college's 35 machines consume 11, 375 kWh of energy per year or the equivalent of 8,425 pounds of coal being burned. Lackmann writes, “…with every 16-ounce bottle you purchase, you also buy a half-pound of carbon dioxide to send into the atmosphere.”

He continues to write that vending machines exist because of demand. Lackmann calls on students to look elsewhere for food and beverage options in order to reduce demand and enact change. To read his full letter, click here.