BYU announces caffeinated beverages will be served on campus and at games

https://twitter.com/BYU/status/910867951464493057



And yes, this includes BYU sporting events.



The drought is over!

From the Q&A...

Q&A About Caffeinated Soft Drinks



With BYU Dining Services’ decision to offer caffeinated soft drinks on BYU’s campus, Dean Wright, director of Dining Services, answered some questions about this change:





Q: When did Dining Services make the decision not to sell caffeinated soft drinks?

A: In the mid 1950s, the director of BYU Food Services decided not to sell caffeinated soft drinks. This decision has continued on since that time. Until more recently, Dining Services rarely received requests for caffeinated soda. Consumer preferences have clearly changed and requests have become much more frequent.



Q: Has the university been supportive of this decision?

A: Yes, the Administrative Vice President has been supportive and has kept the President’s Council informed.



Q: When will this change go into effect?

A: We have already started adding caffeinated soft drinks to the inventory of beverages we sell on campus. Although we are now offering canned and bottled caffeinated soft drinks, it will take longer to change out our fountain equipment.



Q: In changing out the fountain machines, will BYU be able to get the new “freestyle” dispensers?

A: We will provide the latest dispensing equipment at certain locations on campus.



Q: Will Dining Services continue to provide caffeine-free soda?

A: Yes. All of the soft drinks, and other beverages, that BYU currently provides will continue to be offered.



Q: Are you going to sell energy drinks?

A: Highly-caffeinated energy drinks will not be sold by Dining Services.



Q: There are those who would say that Dining Services should not be offering soda at all? How do you respond to these concerns?

A: We realize that there are many choices to be made, and some are more nutritious than others. We strive to offer a variety of food choices and encourage our customers to make healthy choices. We encourage our patrons to visit the Dining Services website where a program is available to promote not only healthy eating, but also a healthy lifestyle. The program is referred to on the website as EAT: Eat, Act, Think.



Q: Does this change your contract with Coca-Cola?

A: No. We have notified Coca-Cola of this change, and our business relationship will continue as before.



Q: Was this decision financially motivated?

A: This decision was not based on financial considerations. We are simply working to meet the preferences of our customers.



Q: Can other vendors now sell caffeinated soft drinks on campus?

A: Just as before, our contract is with Coca-Cola. It is very important that we abide by this contract, which permits us to only offer Coca-Cola products. There are few, limited exceptions; however, it would be a violation of that contract to allow others to come onto campus and sell competing products.

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

When I was at BYU-I the business management majors had a mandatory course where we had to set up our own student-run business during a semester. One of the other teams sold hot chocolate on campus and had some of those flavored syrups that you can add to it. Well, someone complained that some of those syrups had caffeine and that they were associated with coffee so they had to stop using the syrups. :roll:

TulaneVandyRiceCoug wrote:

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

I assume this is tongue on cheek as beer is obviously against the Word of Wisdom while caffeinated drinks aren't necessarily against it.

TulaneVandyRiceCoug wrote:

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

Do you really though?

KingCoug wrote:

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

I assume this is tongue on cheek as beer is obviously against the Word of Wisdom while caffeinated drinks aren't necessarily against it.

Not only are they not necessarily against the WoW, they definitely are not against the Word of Wisdom.

hawkwing wrote:

TulaneVandyRiceCoug wrote:

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

I assume this is tongue on cheek as beer is obviously against the Word of Wisdom while caffeinated drinks aren't necessarily against it.

Not only are they not necessarily against the WoW, they definitely are not against the Word of Wisdom.

I drink them all the time, and they most certainly CAN be against the WOW. So can non-caffeinated drinks. Spirit vs Letter here folks. I don't think most of us even comprehend the money spend on diabetes and it's effects in the USA. I attribute the consequences to the amount of soda we drink (me included).



I don't get the big deal. I went to BYU and if I wanted caffeine, I drank it in the form of soda that I purchased off BYU campus. Did I need BYU's endorsement? Absolutely not. Does this really change anyone's view on cold caffeine beverages?



Now, if BYU replaces Jamba juice with a starbucks it'll raise my eyebrows.



final edit/hot take and I'm sure I'll take some heat here: if you're excited about caffeine drinks at BYU, you may have a word of wisdom problem...

BroncoBot wrote:

KingCoug wrote:

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

I assume this is tongue on cheek as beer is obviously against the Word of Wisdom while caffeinated drinks aren't necessarily against it.

Not only are they not necessarily against the WoW, they definitely are not against the Word of Wisdom.

I drink them all the time, and they most certainly CAN be against the WOW. So can non-caffeinated drinks. Spirit vs Letter here folks. I don't think most of us even comprehend the money spend on diabetes and it's effects in the USA. I attribute the consequences to the amount of soda we drink (me included).



I don't get the big deal. I went to BYU and if I wanted caffeine, I drank it in the form of soda that I purchased off BYU campus. Did I need BYU's endorsement? Absolutely not. Does this really change anyone's view on cold caffeine beverages?



Now, if BYU replaces Jamba juice with a starbucks it'll raise my eyebrows.



final edit/hot take and I'm sure I'll take some heat here: if you're excited about caffeine drinks at BYU, you may have a word of wisdom problem...

Soda is as much against the Word of Wisdom as anything you can eat or drink is against the WoW and less so than meat.



People should be mindful of what they eat and be healthy. BYU also sales Cougar Tales and brownies.

If I were at BYU I'd be disappointed that the school will probably carry Mr. Pibb rather than Dr. Pepper, and Mello Yello rather than Mtn. Dew

This fall when my wife and I took our son back to BYU, we made the obligatory run to target so he could get a couple cases of coke and mt dew to put under his bed at Heleman halls.



Glad to know that when he runs out he can now just head to the Cannon Center.



Oh, and this story made it on to the Washington DC local news, including a little history on the word of wisdom.



Hurricanes, earthquakes, North Korea, and caffeinated soda at BYU.

meh, I am a Pepsi guy. If they ever changed vendors I would be extremely happy

Ha ha. This is hilarious. I honestly don't understand the excitement this has set off.

I am wondering why this isn't in the lounge.

nuk13 wrote:

I am wondering why this isn't in the lounge.

+1

There goes the stone-cold sober ranking....

I read that President Worthen was asked why the change and he said something like after having lost to UT 7 times he needed a stiffer drink to cope :)

BroncoBot wrote:

KingCoug wrote:

I wonder if the day will come when there is beer on tap in the student cafeteria, a la Tulane.

I assume this is tongue on cheek as beer is obviously against the Word of Wisdom while caffeinated drinks aren't necessarily against it.

Not only are they not necessarily against the WoW, they definitely are not against the Word of Wisdom.

I drink them all the time, and they most certainly CAN be against the WOW. So can non-caffeinated drinks. Spirit vs Letter here folks. I don't think most of us even comprehend the money spend on diabetes and it's effects in the USA. I attribute the consequences to the amount of soda we drink (me included).



I don't get the big deal. I went to BYU and if I wanted caffeine, I drank it in the form of soda that I purchased off BYU campus. Did I need BYU's endorsement? Absolutely not. Does this really change anyone's view on cold caffeine beverages?



Now, if BYU replaces Jamba juice with a starbucks it'll raise my eyebrows.



final edit/hot take and I'm sure I'll take some heat here: if you're excited about caffeine drinks at BYU, you may have a word of wisdom problem...

Exactly. Hence the reason I said caffeinated drinks aren't necessarily against the Word of Wisdom. Not in and of themselves but, used to excess, they certainly are. At least on terms of the spirit of the law.

i was asked by a nonLDS acquaintance years ago why I couldn't drink a cup of coffee? He then asked what coffee had that caffinated sodas didn't have. Was it the temperature of the caffine that caused the problem? Cold caffine ok,hot caffine prohibited He then asked if tabaco was prohibited, why was marijuana not specifically listed. Does that mean it is ok? Just an outsiders questions and points of view...

I'm excited about this change--though not because it justifies my level of consumption of caffeinated beverages. I have never bought the argument that was publicly presented as reasons for the absence of caffeinated beverages for purchase on campus that "there is just no demand for them". That always felt like a disingenuous statement to me. It runs in the same vein as justification for the dress and grooming standards as "this standard is what the students want". Many of these things came about in the 1960s--and while the grooming standards have eased in small ways, if you put up a booth in the middle of campus for a month and took a poll I'm not sure you would get much support for the clean-shaven, haircut measuring, clothes-style dictating dress and grooming standards. To me it is simply an effort to make BYU "different"--but I think it is already by being a religious school and the way it facilitates learning in a religious environment. I don't think you need to also make things superficially different by having such strict dress and grooming standards.



PS: Yes I attended BYU and agreed to abide those restrictions and generally did so with little issue except being turned away from a test or picking up my ID because I didn't shave daily (still don't by the way) or my hair was "touching my collar".