When customers savored each morsel from the Breyers ice cream stand last year, they believed they were eating Breyers ice cream. University officials now say, however, other kinds were substituted in place of Breyers, and that they may do so again in the future.
Jim Wulforst, director of dining services, said the University contract with Breyers was "compromised" by ARAMARK Corp., the business in charge of Breyers and several other campus eateries, and Sysco Corporation, a large food service distributor that provided the stand-in ice cream.
"If we are going to use the Breyers trademark and logo, we have to be selling Breyers," Wulforst said. "They spent $40,000 building the kiosk in exchange for our promise that we would only sell Breyers there."
The undetected switch was made only because of an unfortunate lack of options, said ARAMARK District Manager David Randolph.
"We use Sysco, and they only carried a few flavors, but we've requested they carry more," Randolph said. "If we run into problems, we have backup ice cream from a local dairy [producer]."
Arthur Brodie, the dining employee who worked the Breyers counter last year, confirmed the claims.
"I used ice cream that wasn't Breyers," he said, adding that there are two reasons why this occurred though he was "afraid to pinpoint either one."
Wulforst also said that documentation will be required this year to ensure that only Breyers ice cream is sold at the Breyers stand.
"It would be like McDonald's selling Hardee's hamburgers," he said.
Junior Isaac Dolgovskij, co-chair of the Duke University Student Dining Advisory Committee, was shocked when he learned that students were served ice cream under the guise that it was a Breyers product. Dolgovskij called the practice "totally unacceptable."
Informed of the substitute, other students said they were less annoyed at the possibility they consumed lower-quality ice cream than they were frustrated about false advertising.
"They should definitely serve the brand they advertise," said freshman Lauren Feiner. "Otherwise, it's like misrepresentation."
Other students contended, however, that ice cream is still only ice cream.
"I don't care. I just love ice cream," said senior Jeremy Cromer. "If I noticed it wasn't Breyers [it would be an issue], but I didn't."
Even though freshman Dana Jean-Baptiste did not eat at Breyers last year, she agrees that the taste of ice cream is more important than the name it carries.
"I wouldn't mind as long as it's good," Jean-Baptiste said. "I really wouldn't complain."
Vik Devisetty, a first-year medical student and former president of Campus Council, complained more forcefully about ARAMARK, saying that it does not have the well-being of the students in mind when making decisions. He said ARAMARK has a responsibility to be more receptive to DUSDAC's recommendations.
"It's very characteristic of ARAMARK to get less-quality goods to rip-off students," Devisetty said. "They are reneging on their promises."
Kira Rosoff contributed to this story.
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