When Julia Whitten walks into the Ferguson Center to eat lunch, she does not join the long line of students waiting for Chick-fil-A or Subway. Instead, she fixes a salad or grabs vegan noodles from the refrigerated section in the food court.

Whitten, a sophomore majoring in environmental science and Spanish, is one of 2.5 percent of Americans who are vegan, according to statistics reported by PETA. She has been a vegan for about two years.

“At this point I really love it,” she said. “It’s been really awesome and very worthwhile when I think about how what I do impacts the environment.”

Though 2.5 percent may seem like a small percentage, the Huffington Post reported that interest in veganism may in fact be growing.

According to the article, the number of Americans who are vegan has more than doubled in the last three years.

Veganism, which is refraining from eating or using animals or animal products, is becoming more popular on college campuses as well, according to PETA. Peta2, PETA’s youth division, surveyed more than 2,000 colleges and universities and ranked them on vegan-friendliness. The University of Alabama scored a ‘B,’ one of four schools in the state to do so, out of 24 ranked. The University met six of the 10 requirements.

The scores were based on whether the school offered at least one vegan entree at every meal, offered nondairy milk, labeled vegan entrees, included a vegan member on its students advisory board, promoted vegan options, participated in Meatless Mondays, labeled vegan desserts, partnered with students to distribute vegan food, offered an all-vegan station and had an all-vegan dining facility. The surveys were sent to four-year public and private colleges and universities with a dining program.

Kenneth Montville, college campaign coordinator for Peta2, said the goal of the survey was to encourage college and universities to think about what they were offering vegetarians and vegan students.

“In past years, we’ve given awards to schools promoting the most vegan food options, but this year we decided to go one step further and look at every school in the country,” he said. “Not only we are showing the top schools, but also we are showing the schools that are not doing so well. We really wanted to encourage schools to think about how they can push their vegan options to the next level.”

Although Alabama scored very well, the University has a long way to go before it has a vegan friendly program comparable to the highest scoring schools. University of California at San Diego, University of North Texas, Oklahoma City and Brown all have an all-vegan dining facility and partner with students to distribute vegan foods.

Montville said students could go online and rate their school as well and leave comments on whether or not they agree with the score. Alabama has a 100 percent student satisfaction rating on Peta2’s website.

Despite Alabama’s successful rating, Whitten has felt somewhat limited on campus as a minority eater. Though there is always something to eat, it is often lacking in variety. She does not have a meal plan and does not eat in the dining halls often, but when she does it is usually some form of salad.

“They have some vegan options, and I can always get plain vegetables or sometimes rice,” she said. “There is always something to put together in the dining hall. I make lots of salads.”

She said she was surprised to find more options, such as vegan sushi and soy milk, in the refrigerated section of the food court in the Ferguson Center.

“There are some really strange, but awesome options there,” she said.

Each Dining Hall has a dedicated vegetarian station that rotates different vegan and vegetarian options, said Kelsey Faust, marketing manager for Bama Dining. There is also a vegetarian option at each station, such as a bean burrito at the Tex-Mex station, vegetable pizza and vegetarian stir-fry at the Asian station.

“Bama Dining consistently strives to meet the needs of our students, including dietary needs,” Faust said. “We actually have a special dietary needs form on our website that students can complete and turn in to us. We then will answer any questions on the form or set up a meeting with one of our location managers so the student can discuss their needs and develop a menu plan.”

However, PETA’s grading scale may be more lenient than Whitten’s consumption guidelines for herself.

“Especially when it comes to processed foods, they usually consider any food that does not have any overt animal products,” she said. “They may not consider how or where the sugar came from. But that stuff is important to me.”

Though there are many options for everyone, Whitten said she is not sure Alabama’s campus has an atmosphere that encourages students to try going vegan or to consider what they are eating. As a part of the Sustainable Food Committee of the Environmental Council, she and other students are working to see the University’s food atmosphere change.

“We want to incorporate more real food in the dining halls on campus and encourage better labeling of ingredients and clearer nutrition facts,” she said. “If students are given the nutritional benefits of food and focused on healthy food, the more aware they may be and the more likely they are to try going vegan.”

Often Whitten brings her lunch from home. She typically shops at Manna, a natural food store in Tuscaloosa, and Publix. She gets most of her vegetables from the farmers market in Tuscaloosa. Other students often ask Whitten what she eats, Whitten said.

“I eat more than spinach,” she said. “Contrary to what a lot of people seem to believe.”

Whitten said she believes it is possible to be vegan and still eat well. Even going out in Tuscaloosa, she has found that Chipotle and Panera offer options, as well as Five Java. Even Publix offers all-natural food that is vegan friendly.

Going to a major Southern school, Whitten said veganism conflicts with many southern foods. In fact, Whitten has felt that people sometimes think she is not a true southerner if she refuses fried chicken.

“It’s hard because people don’t really understand what it is,” she said. “They think I am not respecting southern culture, but I am still a part of southern culture.”

There are still some foods that she misses, but the trade off is worth it to Whitten.

“What I miss is more about nostalgia than flavor or taste,” she said. “I sometimes think about foods I would eat with my family and miss them, but it has been fun to take those meals and try to make them vegan. For me, how I use the resources on this earth is more important to me and overpowers taste.”