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Harvard University Dining Services will no longer offer disposable to-go containers but will replace them with a reusable alternative that students can check out like library books, the school announced online this week.

In the past, undergraduates eating on the run were used to filling to-go boxes with dining hall food, then throwing them out in compost bins — and many were disturbed when to-go boxes vanished entirely over the summer. But when students return to campus for the fall semester, HUDS is hoping that its bright-green plastic containers will become a dining hall fixture instead.

HUDS spokesperson Crista Martin wrote in an email that students will be able to check out the reusable containers through the Harvard Library lending system, and the status of borrowed containers will be visible on their HOLLIS accounts.

Students who want to pick up a reusable to-go container will be able to scan their Harvard University ID card and a barcode on each container at Meescan check-out stations in each dining hall before filling it with food.

Students may check out up to two containers at a time. Afterward, they will have one week to return their containers to the dishroom in their dining hall after receiving a reminder two to three days before their deadline. If a container is still missing after a few days, students will be charged $10, which will be added to their term bill.

Students who want to eat quickly will still be able to pick up lunch staples at FlyBy in the Science and Engineering Complex and the basement of Memorial Hall, according to Martin. They will also still be able to order bag meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner through the HUDS website.

The changes were first announced by the Harvard College Dean of Students Office in an email to residential staff on Monday but have not yet been announced directly to students.

The new system was piloted in the Mather House dining hall beginning in September 2024. Mather House residents could check out up to two containers at a time. If they failed to return their containers after several weeks and warnings, they would be charged $5 apiece.

Harvard had previously experimented with offering earlier iterations of the program to freshmen dining in Annenberg Hall. Reusable containers were initially offered without conditions, and HUDS churned through tens of thousands of dollars when students failed to return them, according to a person familiar with the program’s history. (Martin declined to comment on the program’s costs.)

According to the College, the change from compostable to reusable to-go containers was largely fueled by an attempt to improve sustainability.

“In the 2024-25 school year, HUDS distributed more than 600,000 compostable clamshell containers from the undergraduate dining halls for food to go,” Martin wrote. “We can do better for our community and our Sustainability and Zero Waste goal.”

HUDS and Harvard College also said that the changes were designed to encourage students to eat in the dining halls — a priority that HUDS tried to pursue through a new weekend menu last semester, only to swiftly reverse course after student complaints.

Jonathan Palumbo, a spokesperson for the College, wrote in an email to The Crimson that “dining halls are not just places to eat, they are an essential element of life at the College.”

Even with the continued option to take food to go, the importance of fostering social interaction between students and “opportunities for learning” through residential dining was emphasized in the August 18 email.

Residential staff — including tutors, proctors, and House aides, who often eat in underclassmen dining halls — might face a bigger change. The Monday email, sent by associate dean of students Lauren E. Brandt, explained that reusable containers will be available to undergraduates on the unlimited meal plan — but not to staff.

“Given that the meals provided as part of your role are meant to encourage interactions with students in the service of the residential system, we hope to see you frequently in the dining halls,” the email read.

Citing food safety concerns, the email also included a reminder that “personal to-go containers are not permitted.” Residential staff, like students, can place orders before 2 p.m. to pick up bagged meals the next day.

Over the summer, students on campus were provided with neither reusable nor disposable to-go containers for their meals. Many said the change was inconvenient and made it difficult to manage meals amid packed schedules.

“We’re all really busy people on our own schedules, but we still need to eat,” Natasha Kulviwat ’28 said. “Not having the to-go boxes, people would just skip meals or purchase from external sources, and not all of us have the financial means to do that.”

“Having the to-go boxes going away was kind of like a shock to the system. I had to change my time management,” Yerosen K. Daba ’28 said.

Though students could pick up premade meals at FlyBy for lunch over the summer, some resorted to other options for taking hot food on the go.

“A few of my friends bought these Tupperware boxes and sneakily scooped food into them so they can get them out,” Silas Olsen ’28 said.

The idea of replacing the compostable containers with reusable counterparts, rather than scrapping the carry-out option altogether, drew more positive feedback.

“If they’re graceful with when I’m allowed to bring it back — say, for example, I eat dinner and then I’m allowed to bring it back the next morning — I’m totally fine with that,” Olsen said.

“I care about reducing one-time usage, like trash, even if it’s compostable, because it takes energy to break things down,” said Jona P. Liu ’28, a writer for The Crimson’s Fifteen Minutes magazine. “Not everyone throws things away properly, so oftentimes it still ends up in the trash and in a wasteland.”

“I think if they’re able to execute that, I think it would be very cool,” she added.

—Staff writer Nina A. Ejindu can be reached at nina.ejindu@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @nina_ejindu.

—Staff writer Claire L. Simon can be reached at claire.simon@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @ClaireSimon.