It is time to say goodbye to the junk food of yesterday and hello to the healthy food of today
Brutus Bowls is the hot new vending machine to take the Ferris State campus by storm. This isn’t like any other vending machine. It is a salad robot vending machine that was unveiled in its grand opening on Sept. 16 outside the Quad Café in the University Center.
The vending machine, which cost $39,881, is one first to be on a college campus in Michigan. This included a full maintenance agreement, the food canisters and back up canisters in case any of the other one’s break. The vending machine would have made its first appearance last year in 2019 but due to COVID-19, its unveiling was pushed back. It has a combination of 22 ingredients to offer multiple different ways to make your perfect salad.
Ferris Culinary Operations Manager Steve Dorey is excited to have the vending machine on campus. He said that with just the one for now, it will be moving to the FLITE library and is a good meal replacement, so students don’t have to leave the building.
“They come with the base salads, the tradition salads and we selected the ingredients that we are going to have in there,” Dorey said. “We plan to make changes in the future with the potential for breakfast items. It’s really whatever we want to put in the canisters.”
There is an option to make your own customizable salad if a person chooses. The canisters are in a refrigerated part to help preserve the ingredients. Each salad will cost between $5-$7 depending on if you choose a traditional or customizable.
Salad Maker Jeanie Stout is the salad specialist for Ferris. She is responsible for filling the machine with its ingredients.
“I think it’s a good thing, I think it’s more of a variety, more for people who don’t necessary want to leave where they are at,” Stout said. “They can get it at the library or whatever building they are in.”
This was an exciting day for our very own mascot, Brutus the Bulldog as he was the ribbon cutter for the unveiling. He was happy to fill his dog bowl up with the very first Brutus Bowl.
A live stream of the event took place over Facebook and Instagram Live to aid in social distancing efforts. The hour-long steam showed how the vending machine worked. The vending machine takes credit cards and Bulldog Bucks.