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It is no secret that college students love their coffee, perhaps even need their coffee. With the late night study sessions, the long class hours and the obligatory romp in the local bars every weekend, it’s safe to say that coffee could be considered a sixth food group for the 20-something crowd.

It is no secret that college students love their coffee, perhaps even need their coffee. With the late night study sessions, the long class hours and the obligatory romp in the local bars every weekend, it’s safe to say that coffee could be considered a sixth food group for the 20-something crowd.

The students on the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point campus are no exception. “I should just have an I.V. hooked up to me all day just pumping coffee into me,” said Liz Kelly, a junior at UW-SP.

The UW-SP campus has numerous coffee outposts on campus which provide students their coveted elixir, but the recent reopening of the Dreyfus University Center has brought with it the reopening of the popular Basement Brewhaus, a popular mecca for students to relax, study, nap and socialize. The Brewhaus, offers the standard menu of lattes, cappuccinos, mochas and of course, regular coffee.

For the more socially conscious caffeine addicts, the Homegrown Café, which is a new addition to the Dreyfus University Center just arrived last January and conveniently located in the DUC concourse area, was created through student demand for more sustainable food options on campus. All the food and beverages in the Homegrown Café is 100 percent organic.

Shawn Connelly, former chair of the University Center Advisory Policy Board, explained the Homegrown Café was originally meant to be a standard convenience store type venue located in the DUC.

“There were a number of students who wanted to see a food venue that sold 100 percent local and organic food,” said Connelly. That venue manifested itself in the form of the Homegrown Café. Its menu, in addition to coffee drinks, include Cliff Bars, sunflower seed packets, fruit, organic juices, muffins, doughnuts and chips among other items.

But with organic food and beverages comes extra costs, and now the Homegrown Café is faced with the harsh reality that college students may not be able to afford their products.

“I never go to the [Homegrown] café,” said Kallie Johnson, a senior at UW-SP, “I usually make my own coffee that I get from the co-op in town, so it’s still organic, but a lot less expensive. But their prices are ridiculous; I just can’t afford it.”

“There’s a brand of juice in the Homegrown Café that costs four dollars,” said Johnson, a senior at UW-SP, “I mean, that better be magical juice or something.”

“For that price, I could go to Partners on Wednesday and get four bottles of beer,” said Johnson.

So exactly how much more expensive are the Homegrown Café products in comparison to their main-stream counterpart, the Brewhaus? A 12 ounce cup of regular coffee at the Homegrown Café will set a student back $1.39 while a 12 ounce cup of regular coffee at the Brewhaus costs $1.35. Not a huge difference, but the prices really split in the specialty drinks category. A 12 ounce cappuccino at the Brewhaus costs $2.50 without any syrup added. The same drink at the Homegrown Café costs $3.29. An espresso at the Brewhaus costs $1.25 while a few steps away at the Homegrown Café it costs $1.49.

The Homegrown Café also offers smoothies for students that cost $4.19. The smoothies however are not made with actual fruit, but rather with a pre-made organic mix. A real fruit smoothie costs $3.50 at Emy J’s downtown.

“The Homegrown Café has lost money since it has opened,” said Connelly. “I think what happened is there were a handful of students who pushed the idea of a totally organic food venue and got it to happen, but when it comes down to it, the majority of the students on this campus are not willing to pay extra for organic food when they can walk down the hall and get cheaper food. College students just don’t have all that much money to spend.”

Connelly’s sentiments were echoed by several students on campus.

“I’ll be socially conscious when I can afford to be,” said Kelly, “My checking account just doesn’t allow me to be 100 percent organic right now.”

“I’d love to be more sustainable, but I just can’t afford it,” said Sara Jensen. “I try to be sustainable in other ways, I always recycle.”

The Homegrown Café also faces serious competition with the Brewhaus, which has been a staple on the UW-SP campus for several years. The Brewhaus, along with serving coffee and tea products, serves beer and soda as well as a limited menu of snack food, or “brain food” as one student feverishly studying called it. It also has pool tables, deep couches and $1 bottles of beer on Thursday nights, making it the premier campus hang out.

“You really can’t beat the atmosphere of the Brewhaus,” said Danielle Schmidt, a junior at UW-SP and employee of the Basement Brewhaus.

As far as sustainability goes, the Brewhaus can also throw its hat into the socially conscious ring.

“We do offer fair trade coffee here, so students can choose to be socially conscious without having to spend a whole lot more money,” said Schmidt.

The Homegrown Café has taught the university that students like the idea of sustainability, but can not financially support it.

‘There is a lot of room for growth,” said Connelly. “We already offer a lot of local food options in the DUC, and we’re always looking for more ways to bring more organic and local foods to our campus. We just need to be aware of our student’s financial situations and offer food options that they can afford.”