Smarty plants veggie markets for uni students

Foodbank Victoria is helping uni students across the country eat more veggies at a time when the demand for food relief is surging.

“Living on a student budget isn’t the best for a nutritious, healthy diet,” says Johannes, an industrial engineering student from Germany. Indeed, only 5% of tertiary students in Australia are eating their daily recommended 5 serves of veg, relying on low-cost, low-nutrition food to get by. And two-thirds worry they’ll run out of food every week. For international students, the crisis is compounded by restrictions on how much they’re allowed to work.

But today, Johannes loaded up with bags full of fresh produce that he’s planning to cook with his flatmates. A week’s worth of carrots, potatoes, onions, capsicums, eggplants, zucchini and sweet potato. He stumbled across Foodbank Victoria’s very first Plus One Serve market at Monash University, where 464 students were able to access 2400kg of fresh vegetables. “I just came from class and saw the line – and saw this amazing opportunity to get some free food.”

The on-campus market project, funded by Hort Innovation Frontiers with co-investment from Foodbank Victoria and contributions from the Australian government, is investigating ways to boost veggie consumption and healthy eating habits at this critical life stage. At a time when many people are responsible for feeding themselves for the first time – but don’t necessarily have the funds or skills to make healthy choices.

For computer science student Vajon, Foodbank’s market is a welcome sight on the Clayton campus as a time when the fuel crisis has seen him cut back on car trips to the supermarket. It also means he’ll be eating a wider variety of vegetables he can’t usually afford. “I only eat zucchinis or other types of vegetables when I come to Foodbank,” he says. “I feel very happy in getting free groceries, it takes a load of my financial stress and financial pressures. At the moment, it’s a bit tough to buy veg, especially if it’s outside my budget.”

The program not only provides health benefits and cost-of-living relief for students, it also supports growers and farming communities by providing a genuine secondary supply chain for the produce they work so hard to grow. “We know that when money is tight, vegetables are often the first thing that people give up in their grocery baskets,” says Foodbank Victoria Chief Commercial Officer Katie Fisher. “These students are not buying veggies at the moment, so every carrot or potato that goes through this model is an additional market for growers.”

Students at the Monash market also received bread, green apples and a food hamper complete with nourishing vegetable-rich recipes and practical videos to enhance vegetable consumption through food literacy interventions. It’s a model that can be scaled nationally to reach the 1.5 million tertiary students around Australia – and encourage them to eat an extra serve of veggies each day.   

For Johannes, it’s this kind of support that encourages healthy eating. “Universities in Germany or Denmark don’t really have these kinds of events where they show you how to eat healthy, live healthy. It’s a great thing.”

Funding acknowledgement

Enhancing vegetable consumption through food literacy interventions in tertiary settings (HN24005) is funded through Hort Innovation Frontiers with co-investment from Foodbank Victoria and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.