A mysterious occurrence has struck Madison High School: the ice cream vending machine has disappeared out of the cafeteria and the Powerade machine in F hall has been dormant for months. When the drink machine was installed last spring, excitement filled the air over the idea of being able to purchase sports drinks and water without having to go all the way to the cafeteria. But then reality set in, the machine was never filled with drinks and hasn’t been since it was installed. So what purpose does the device serve if it is just collecting dust in the F hall alcove? Isn’t it a waste of money if no profit is ever made on drinks?

The beloved ice cream machine has also been taken out of the school, which is a terrible tragedy. A student can no longer purchase a nice after-lunch frozen treat. The purpose of the removal of the ice cream machine is mysterious and incredulous.

I got down to business to figure out the mystery of the vending machines

Well, as it turns out, the Powerade machine does in fact work. However, it is on a timer that only turns the machine on after 3 pm. The reason for this is that it is actually against New Jersey state law to serve greater than 20 oz. of a drink that has sugar. Since a 20 oz. Powerade has 14 grams of sugar, it cannot be served during school hours. So students can only purchase their sports drinks just after school ends.

The ice cream machine has more of a sad story; it was removed because it made no profit. Students weren’t buying enough ice cream so the food service was losing money on it.

There is a brighter side to the story; there is a high chance that in the near future a frozen drink machine will be installed in the cafeteria. It will serve slushy drinks made of 100% frozen fruit. So, the mystery of the machines has been solved.