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THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF BENTLEY UNIVERSITY SINCE 1963

THE VANGUARD VOLUME LVIII ISSUE IV

COMING SOON

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26 2015

French food giant to start more ethical sourcing Sodexo will stop the usage of battery cages for its liquid eggs staff writer

Sodexo, Bentley University’s premier food service provider, has officially agreed to stop sourcing its liquid eggs from battery cage farms. This decision was made on February 19th in response to a 130,000 signature strong petition filed by The Humane League, and the growing popularity of responsible and sustainable agriculture. In battery cage farms, egg-laying chickens are stuffed into tiny wire cages where they stay for their entire useful lives. Confined to these cages, the hens have barely any space to move around and are incapable of even spreading their wings. This brutal and inhumane practice has been banned in the European Union but only in several US states. In 2012, Sodexo made the shift to stop sourcing its shelled eggs from these farms. How-

ever, the majority of eggs that Sodexo uses are not shelled, but rather liquid eggs which continued to come from battery cage sources. In January of this year, The Humane League launched a petition to coerce Sodexo to extend their commitment towards humane farming prac-

tices by switching their use of liquid eggs from battery cage farms as well. The Humane League is an animal rights advocacy group that was founded in 2005. On their official website their mission is “to save the lives of as many animals as possible and to reduce as much animal cruelty

as we can.” They understand the suffering that farm animals have to go through due to their exclusion from state anti-cruelty laws and as a result primarily focus on issues related to farm animals. Through sheer hard work and persistence, the Humane League’s petition reached

Courtesy of twitter.com

BY Adam haidermota

After a lot of hard work, The Humane League was finally able to release this poster.

130,714 signatories and prompted Sodexo to take action. In a press release, Sodexo announced that it will eliminate the use of veal crates by 2017 (also an inhumane practice) and source its liquid eggs solely from cage-free farms by 2020. Sodexo announced that this was part of its Better Tomorrow Plan, which it launched in 2009 in order to form a roadmap to global sustainability. Sodexo claims to use 20 million pounds of liquid eggs annually, making the step to move away from battery cage farms a huge win for chickens nationwide. It’s important to consider the sincerity of Sodexo’s Better Tomorrow Plan. When initially confronted with the issue of sourcing eggs from battery cage farms, Sodexo rapidly stopped sourcing shelled eggs, a very small portion of the eggs they use, SEE SODEXO, PAGE 4

BY Jennifer wright news editor

Living on campus unfortunately means that your only pet for the next four years can be a small fish, but Bentley has set out to give students the chance to play with some furry, four-legged friends as well. Over the last few years the university has brought Kesar, a puppy being trained to be a canine assistant to campus, as well as therapy dogs to help students de-stress. President Gloria Larson sent an email to the entire student body on Wednesday, February 18th to update everyone on the recent news regarding the dog that used to accompany Assistant Director of the Residential Center, Tony Martin, everywhere: Kesar. This dog was a golden retriever/lab mix who lived in Martin’s apartment on-campus. Kesar spent 18 months training with Martin, who worked to prepare him to attend formal training at Canine Companies for Independence (CCI) in New York. Kesar came to campus after President Larson mentioned the concept during an

RA training and Martin volunteered to take in a dog and train it. Kesar spent his early years on campus socializing with his “puppy raiser” volunteer, Martin, before moving on and being placed with a permanent owner. Martin was responsible for submitting monthly reports to CCI, attending obedience classes, teaching Kesar manners and other basic commands through positive reinforcement, feeding him a predetermined diet, providing him a kennel to sleep indoors and follow other rules set by CCI. According to President Larson, Kesar “gained experience meeting different people and growing comfortable in crowds and otherwise added the important social skills he would later require through his regular interaction with the Bentley community.” He was a familiar face around campus, constantly with Martin, from Convocation to Homecoming and more. He left Bentley in May of 2014, then graduated from CCI in February of 2015 and has since been placed with his new owner, Terry Husband. She uses a motorized wheelchair due to “severe

THE VANGUARD/Jennifer Wright

Beloved therapy dog and Bentley “mascot” Kesar graduates

Kesar smiles at Convocation 2013. rheumatoid arthritis and a recent car accident.” Her son, also part of the canine assistance program, has cerebral palsy and both love having Kesar around. Kesar has since graduated, but there is talk of bringing more puppies to campus to train. In the meantime, the Center for Health and Wellness brings therapy dogs to campus frequently for students. These dogs offer great therapeutic value; according

to research referenced by Senior Assistant Director of the Center of Wellness and Prevention Jessica Greher Traue, “10 minutes of petting an animal can lower blood pressure, boost happiness and reduce stress or feelings of anxiety.” The benefits of having dogs on campus are many. When a student feels stressed out, lonely, or missing a pet from home, these dogs offer them an outlet for a few minutes to a few hours where they can just

relax and enjoy their company. Bentley has been bringing these dogs to campus since December 2012 as part of its “Take a Paws” program, with over 300 students attending the first event on Reading Day. It hosts their dogs through Pawsitive Touch, a local chapter of Therapy Dog International. One of the nurse practitioners on campus, Martha SEE THERAPY DOGS, PAGE 4

Marjiunana

Snapchat

Podemos

Our business editor takes another stab as the market gains its first major investor.

Whats new with Snapchat? Paola Sierra has the answers!

Our political analyst Kevin Laryea analyzes Spain’s Presidency and economy.

ENTERTAINMENT 6

OPINION 9

BUSINESS 5


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