Kent State's Campus Kitchen

            Picture this: twenty undergraduate students collaborating in a large industrial kitchen.  Some students are preparing apples for pies, breaking bread for stuffing, and cutting vegetables-- all for a Thanksgiving meal. Four volunteers are in the pantry cleaning and taking inventory. A recovery team is organizing the latest fresh produce picked up from Trader Joe's. Later, all reunite to organize the hundreds of canned goods donated over the past few days. This food will eventually be distributed to hungry and food insecure members of the Kent community. 

            This transpired on Saturday November 17^th, at the end of national Hunger and Homelessness Awareness week.  The office of Community Engaged Learning held a “Super Service Saturday” where approximately forty three volunteers helped feed community members in Kent.  Is it the season of giving that has all these students so enthusiastic about preparing food for the needy? Well yes, but this doesn’t deviate from the normal activities that occur in this kitchen each and every week.  The Campus Kitchen at Kent State University does this all year round.

            Established in 2011, students wanted to address the problem that they saw regarding our food system: an abundance of food produced, a third of food being wasted, and community members and students around them experiencing food insecurity and hunger.   

            Ohio has one of the highest rates of food insecurity in the US, about 16.1%.  There is a wide range of estimates for food insecurity prevalence on college campuses, ranging from 15-56%.  But what is this prevalence at KSU?  A dissertation by Dr. Jennifer King indicated that 35.7% of students at Kent State University are food insecure.  With more than a third of students experiencing these struggles, students have banned together to help feed their peers and community members.  With such high food insecurity rates, action is needed to combat this, and the Campus Kitchen is up for the challenge.

            Located in the production kitchen on the second floor of Beall Hall, The Campus Kitchen has multiple programs in which students can volunteer to pick up, prepare, and distribute food to others in need.  Food donated by Trader Joe’s in Woodmere OH, local farmers at the Haymaker’s Farmer’s Market and University Dining Services would have gone to waste if not picked up by these volunteers. Since established, the Campus Kitchen has recovered 578,518 pounds of food!  This food is then distributed through an on campus, bi-weekly food pantry or prepared into meals and distributed to community partners including Springtime of Hope, Kent Social Services, Upper Room Ministries and Center of Hope. On average, 300 meals are prepared and served each week, and an average of 16,000 meals donated each year!

            The Campus Kitchen provides opportunities for students to learn more about the issue of hunger and engage with community members and peers.  It’s an amazing hands-on way to give back to a community and provide individuals with nutritious and delicious foods. Learn more about the campus kitchen on their website, and sign up to volunteer on GivePulse!

           

TB

References:

1.     King, J. A. (2017). Food Insecurity Among College Students -- Exploring The Predictors of Food Assistance Resource Use. Retrieved from Networked Digital Library of Theses & Dissertations. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=kent1492466215893925.

2.     Kent State University. The Campus Kitchen Project. https://campuskitchens.org/locations/#kent-state-university. Accessed 29, 2018.

3.     United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Services. Food Access Research Atlas. https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-access-research-atlas/. Updated May 18, 2017. Accessed November 24, 2018.