The elimination of trays at a number of university cafeterias was a green initiative, but it wasn’t about plastic. It was a simple idea that has been reducing food waste in several schools in recent months.
Some diners are upset, but most institutions are happy with the result. Students who are on full board at a university tend to experience weight gain. It will be interesting to see if taking the trays away puts a dent in that statistic.
Food waste is a huge environmental and social issue in the USA and elsewhere. There are some great blogs out there that are devoted to this topic.