A moldy orange was among the produce available for students to grab from the Viking Vault at LBCC’s Liberal Arts Campus on Thursday.
Although this was the only spoiled item in the Vault, it is not the first time students have seen imperfect food.
LBCC student Jonathan Vazquez saw rotten produce in the fridge during the spring semester.
“I remember seeing broccoli and other vegetables that had gone really bad. They were moldy. Products on the shelf above it were also starting to go bad,” Vazquez said.
Vazquez also said he saw a can of beans that expired 2 years ago last winter.
Other students have no concerns about the food the Viking Vault offers.
Jasper Shephard, who uses the Vault on a daily basis, has not come across any spoiled food.
“The quality (of the food) is very good. I like to get the produce because my grandma likes to cook with it,” Shephard said. “The food is trustworthy.”
Although both students had different perspectives of the Viking Vault’s selection, they both agree that the food should be inspected more often.
“I’d say maybe the people who work here (at the Vault) are busy and don’t have time to look through things thoroughly,” Shephard said.
Vazquez believes that consistently inspecting the food at the Vault is doable.
“I’ve seen other community colleges with similar programs where somebody will check once every night. We should do a checkup of the inventory at least once a week. It doesn’t happen as often as it should,” Vazquez said.
Viking Vault staff member Cheseya Tohaka refills plastic utensils at the Liberal Arts Campus on Thursday. The Vault provides free groceries and hygiene products to students. (Ryenne Jolliff)
Justin Mendez, director of LBCC’s Basic Needs programs, wants to reassure students that the food available at the Viking Vault is safe to eat.
“We would never put out anything to risk students’ health,” Mendez said.
Mendez said the Vault’s offerings are similar to what would be found at a food pantry.
“We follow guidelines provided by the LA Regional Food Bank. Our food is inspected by the city of Long Beach, and the Office of Health updates our permits all the time,” Mendez said.
Mendez said the guidelines are in place to follow everyone’s standards of food safety.
“Someone might see food that’s one week past the sell by date and be perfectly fine with that. Others might see that the sell by date is the next day and avoid it. This is why we follow the guidelines.” Mendez said.
Mendez’s solution is to ensure that students are aware of the difference between the sell by date and the expiration date.
“We want to share that just because food items that are past the sell by date doesn’t mean they’re inedible. It’s important to provide education and give students that knowledge,” Mendez said.
The Viking Vault is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in B-103.