Chick-fil-A fast food restaurant has issued a challenge for its customers, which requires them to keep their phones aside while eating food at their restaurant. If the customer manages to stay from his phone during the entire meal, the restaurant will give free ice cream.

The challenge has been termed as ‘Cell Phone Coop Challenge’ and the customers are required to keep their electronics in a wired box of white color, called coop, and are not allowed to take them while having their meal.

The idea of this challenge was given by Brad Williams, an operator of Chick-fil-A in Georgia. He stated that the purpose of the challenge is to offer customers a sense of community, so that they can spend some quality time with their friends and family.

“But as we all know, technology increasingly demands more of our time and can be a big distraction, even while we’re eating. This got me thinking about what we could do to reduce this distraction during meals,” said Williams.

With this aim in mind, Williams, along with his team, developed the idea of Coop Challenge, which is now being followed by over 150 outlets of the restaurant. A 2015 Informate Mobile Intelligence study revealed that every day, 4.7 hours on an average are spent by the Americans on phones.

The data reveals that several people find it difficult to keep phones on the dinner table, but the notions are changing with every passing generation. The Center for the Digital Future revealed that individuals born after 1982 disagree with the above notion.

The small, square box is kept on every table and diners are required to put their cell phones in it after putting them on silent. If the phone doesn’t come out of the ‘Cell Phone Coop’, then everyone gets a free ice cream. The habit of using cell phones has serious adverse consequences on social life, irrespective of age, gender, ethnicity and mood.