- The University of Florida permanently banned Krishna Lunch on Aug. 19, ending a nearly 55-year partnership without providing an explanation.
- The ban followed a February incident where a Krishna Lunch delivery truck hit a student, and the university terminated the agreement citing its discretion under the MOU.
- Krishna Lunch plans to continue serving meals off-campus and is considering legal action claiming UF violated religious freedom rights.
After six months without a clear explanation from the University of Florida for suspending Krishna Lunch from campus, the school permanently banned the organization on Aug. 19 — one day before classes began — ending a nearly 55-year partnership.
UF never told the volunteer organization—which delivers free vegetarian meals to the campus’s Plaza of The Americas—why it’d been suspended and later banned.
But both measures followed an incident in February when a Krishna Lunch delivery box truck hit a student walking on Buckman Drive near University Avenue.
After months of continually reaching out to UF via phone and email, even rubbing shoulders with some administrators in person seeking to address the incident and rectify a way to move forward, the notice of termination came in an email from Vice President for Business Affairs Brandi Renton to Krishna Lunch leaders, like former advisor Carl Woodham and Senior Advisor Bob Cohen.
Renton said under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between UF and the organization (ISKCON of Gainesville, Inc., also known as IOG), the agreement could be terminated immediately at the school’s discretion, with or without cause.
“As a result of this termination, IOG is no longer authorized to conduct any activities on UF’s campus pursuant to the MOU, including serving food on campus or operating vehicles through areas of campus that are restricted to traffic, including to or from the Plaza of the Americas,” Renton said. “All rights, privileges, and permissions granted under the MOU are hereby revoked. We wish you and your organization all the best going forward.”
Woodham and Cohen said UF’s hedging to talk to Krishna Lunch and its ultimate termination baffled them and stifled a critical component of sharing their religion through generosity. They said three local attorneys offered pro bono assistance to pursue a federal lawsuit against UF for violating freedom of religion rights.
UF spokesperson Steve Orlando referred Mainstreet to the termination email when the outlet reached out for comment.
“We’re kind of blindsided and shocked. We didn’t expect this,” Cohen said. “It’s bewildering. We’re just trying to figure out what to do.”
Cohen said the termination clashed with UF’s long history of inviting and even celebrating Krishna Lunch on campus.
Among thousands of students and faculty who frequently ate Krishna Lunch meals, he said numerous presidents did too, including former President Kent Fuchs, who initiated a campus-wide 50th anniversary event for Krishna Lunch.
When UF renovated the Plaza of the Americas, Cohen said Krishna Lunch raised $250,000 to design its lunch distribution area around the organization’s needs, adding benches and tables donated by alumni and community members.
In the first week back at classes, sticky notes reading “Bring Back Krishna Lunch” and “Feed Your Neighbor” adorned the benches.
Without a reason for the termination, Cohen said the organization is left guessing why.
He denied a rumor that UF stayed silent because Krishna Lunch had not identified the driver involved in the box truck incident. He said the driver had called the police and had received a ticket for distracted driving.
Cohen said he wondered if free Krishna meals posed a business threat to UF’s food vendor Chartwells Higher Education.
He said last year the company set up a vegetarian food truck right where Krishna Lunch distributed. Providing more options delighted Cohen, who aims to reach students struggling from food insecurity. But he said students often gravitated towards the Krishna Lunch since they’re only asked to contribute donations. The same complaints arose a few decades ago when Aramark served at the school, Cohen said.
Students also initiated a petition in June to support restoring Krishna Lunch meals to campus. The movement garnered over 1,500 signatures, but Cohen said it never made it to administrators because UF wouldn’t grant a meeting.
Just after the box truck incident, Krishna Lunch received a fleet of electric carts it’d purchased earlier in the year to replace the box trucks. The carts now sit in storage.
“It was a 10-mile-an-hour unfortunate accident, and the university kind of used that as an excuse, we think, to get rid of us,” he said.
Krishna Lunch has not stopped and will continue serving meals from its off-campus headquarters at 214 NW 14th St. In Gainesville.
Cohen said the organization is still hoping UF will talk to them and encourage concerned alumni, faculty and community members to reach out to the university. He also said the Krishnas might plan a prayer vigil and work to maintain their on-campus presence any way they can.
