Fresh food market at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay aims to address food insecurity

Lakehead University is trying to reduce the barriers to eating healthy by bringing fresh produce to its Thunder Bay, Ont., campus for students to buy at a cheaper price than at the grocery store.

The Lakehead Fresh Market is a partnership between the Lakehead University Student Union (LUSU) Food Resource Centre, Aramark, and the school's conference services and student health and wellness departments.

Aramark sells the fruits and vegetables to the LUSU Food Resource Centre at cost, which means students can purchase the items at the market at a lower rate. Staff and faculty members will also have access.

The first market of the semester was held Tuesday at the Agora, which is the central building on campus.

"We find that if students are on a budget, they aren't necessarily able to afford fresh produce all the time," said Sierra Garofalo, director of food security at the LUSU Food Resource Centre.

"The first step that people tend to make is to cut those fresh items, and so we just want to make that more accessible so that students who maybe wouldn't be able to afford it at the store can come and visit us."

The Food Resource Centre, which offers an emergency food pickup program and other resources, is seeing more than 200 uses a month from students experiencing food insecurity, Garofalo said.

About 90 per cent of users last school year were international students.

This year, the centre is also offering cooking classes to help teach students how to cook healthy meals on a budget.

"It's just a way to learn new skills and also in a community setting, being able to make friends and know that you're not alone in these types of situations," said Garofalo.

Lindsey Wachter, health and wellness promoter with the student health and wellness department, said the Lakehead Fresh Market was inspired by previous markets run by Roots Community Food Centre.

The hope was that by operating the market in house, it could be offered on a more regular basis, she explained.

"Healthy eating obviously gives you more energy – you have more fuel and also benefits your overall mental well-being," Wachter said. "It's really important that we are giving students opportunities to get food and teaching them how to use that food as well."

The convenience of being able to purchase the produce on campus is another big factor, especially when students have varying class schedules and limited access to transportation, she said.