Crisp green lettuce, honeydew melons, red apples and potatoes are just a few of the local and sustainable treasures that may be found inside the Good Food Box, a new program aimed at promoting healthy eating and local food within the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) campus community.
The Good Food Box program provides students, staff and faculty with the opportunity to purchase fresh, local, and organic fruits and vegetables delivered to campus every second week. The department of student housing & residence life takes orders for various sizes of shipments through the Good Food Box, a program run by FoodShare Toronto. All food comes directly from farmers and the Ontario Food Terminal and is delivered to the campus.
“This is a wonderful opportunity, not only for students in residence, but also for the whole campus community -- including employees -- to support local farmers and eat food produced in an organic and sustainable way,” says Tom Snell, project coordinator and recent alumnus (BBA ’09). “You hear that university students sometimes gain 10 to 15 pounds in their first year, but learning to eat and cook with lots of fruits and vegetables is a great way to prevent the Freshman 15 while at the same time supporting Ontario farmers!”
The program was originally introduced to campus by The Green Wizards, a student environmental group that placed orders on behalf of the residence population. Student housing & residence life has since adopted the program and is expanding its access to the entire campus.
Michelle Verbrugghe, director of student housing & residence life, says that “Running the Good Food Box program on campus has really given us an opportunity to connect with our community, while promoting healthy living and sustainable food practices. Students have enjoyed the low cost and convenience, and staff and faculty have enjoyed the food’s freshness and quality.”
Various options are available. The Good Food Box comes in two sizes, Family ($17) and Small ($12) while the program also offers a small Fruit Box ($12); and an Organic Box in Large ($32), Small ($22) or Wellness Box ($12).
Shipments are delivered every second Wednesday to the UTSC residence reception area. Orders are due by the end of the business day on the Tuesday of the week prior to delivery. For instance, to obtain produce in the August 18 shipment, order no later than August 10. For the September 1 shipment, order no later than August 24.
To order your Good Food Box or for more information about the Good Food Box, contact student housing & residence life at 416-287-7365, or residences@utsc.utoronto.ca or visit the Good Food Box web site at:http://www.foodshare.net/goodfoodbox05.htm.