Campus Life

Caffeine On Campus

As Aggies increase studying time, coffee consumption increases on A&M campus.
By Kylee Reid, The Battalion December 1, 2016

Finals week is the busiest time of the year not only for students, but for the three Chartwells Starbucks locations on campus.
Finals week is the busiest time of the year not only for students, but for the three Chartwells Starbucks locations on campus.

(Rachel Grant/The Battalion)

 

Finals week is the busiest time of the year not only for students, but for the three Chartwells Starbucks locations on campus — generating the most revenue of any college campus in the nation for the coffee giant.

With finals about to begin, Texas A&M University students are approaching the final stretch of the semester. From meeting deadlines to preparing for tests, more and more students are trading the campus libraries and everyday study tools for coffee mugs and campus coffee shops.

Ben Walters, assistant director of dining services at Chartwells, said he has seen a sharp increase in caffeine consumption on campus recently.

“[Students are] drinking more coffee,” Walters said. “We’re seeing more of, ‘I’ll have drip coffee with shots of espresso’ or, ‘Iced coffee with espresso in it.’ We’re constantly having people ask us how to get more caffeine.”

Walters, who is based out of the Hullabaloo Starbucks, said the sales of the three A&M Starbucks locations — Hullabaloo, Evans and the Quad — are some of the busiest campus shops in the country.

“At the Hullabaloo location we do about 700 transactions a day,” Walters said. “At Starbucks Evans, they do close to 2,000 and the Corps store being close to 1,000.”

According to Chartwells representative Courtney Bryant, all the campus locations combined go through an average of 119 gallons of coffee a day. Breaking down the coffee consumption, that number is equivalent to 15,232 ounces or 1,270 cups of tall-sized — 12 ounces — coffee sold.

Meghan Windham, Student Health Services dietitian, recommended a daily maximum of 400 mg of coffee consumed per person.

“Research and data show that drinking no more than 400 mg of caffeine a day which would be about four cups with eight ounces in a cup, is the maximum amount that can still be considered healthy,” Windham said.

Windham said excessive consumption of caffeine for prolonged periods of time can cause side effects including increased heart rate, irritability and withdrawal symptoms that can make people feel like they have to drink coffee every day.

“There are some good benefits in coffee,” Windham said. “We’re seeing that in the research. However, too much at one time from that caffeine standpoint can be detrimental.”

The Starbucks’ nutritional caffeine value for a regular-brew 12 oz coffee is listed at 260 mg. Applying this fact to the daily amount of coffee consumed on campus, this is equivalent to a consumption value of 330,200 mg of caffeine daily. This is also enough coffee to fulfill the recommended caffeine intake for 825 people, based upon the recommended amount of 400 as given by Windham.

This number does not include the caffeine consumed from beverages other than coffee that are sold at the three locations.

According to Bryant, the Starbucks Evans location uses an average of 180 pounds of espresso per week. With one ounce equivalent to one shot and 16 ounces in a pound, this comes out to nearly 2,880 shots of espresso consumed on average per week from the Evans location alone.

Instead of using excessive amounts of caffeine as a stimulus for alertness and energy, as well as appetite suppressants, Windham said students should drink caffeinated drinks in moderation to promote a healthier and more balanced life.

“Some healthier alternatives I like to recommend is that if your gonna drink coffee, try to drink it without those added sugars,” Windham said. “Coffee without added sugars and creamers, even your hot teas, are a great alternative. There are added health benefits and even some antioxidants in the hot teas that are going to have some caffeine in them.”

Windham also said hot teas have a lower caffeine amount, enabling students to drink higher volumes at one time, giving them the same sense of alertness without the overwhelming side effects of excessive caffeine consumption.

Despite Windham’s healthy alternatives to gain more energy, the campus Starbucks locations expect an increase of business with finals around the corner.

“We’ll see more traffic in the evenings when students are studying more,” Walters said. “A lot of people are trying to dump Dining Dollars. The end of the fall is different than the spring because Dining Dollars will carry over into the spring. A lot of locations — it won’t matter at the end of the fall. Just like a regular coffee shop, regardless of Dining Dollars, finals makes things pick up quite a bit.”

This article by Kylee Reid originally appeared in The Battalion.

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