When students go off to college, it tends to be the first time in their lives they’ve purchased their own groceries, decided what they could or could not eat for every meal, and how healthy they want their diet to be. Unfortunately, the “freshman fifteen” isn’t a popular phrase for no reason; many students take this newfound freedom to gluttonous extremes and indulge in more snack foods than smart foods, just because they can. This post from FoodService Director explains how one university is trying to change that with a crop-to-campus program that provides healthy options for students, while also stimulating the local farming economy. Each week, Community-Supported Agriculture programs bring high-quality and healthy produce from nearby organic farms to two different pickup locations at Kansas University, where students are able to buy fresh fruits and veggies and also sign up for a subscription program that would deliver the items to them each week, for a nominal fee. Not only are the students presented with fresh, healthy choices (including produce they may not normally find in their local grocery store), but local farmers benefit from the cash flow from the weekly subscription service.

Read the full article here: Universities Bring Local Food to Campuses