Utah Valley University Expands Food Insecurity Initiative with Cooking Classes and Garden Produce — Utah Valley University

Event summary

Utah Valley University (UVU) launched cooking classes to help students prepare meals using fresh produce from its on-campus food pantry and GRIT Garden.
The campus food pantry served over 12,000 students and distributed 67,000 pounds of food last year.
The GRIT Garden, maintained by students, provided nearly 16,000 pounds of fresh produce in 2025.
Cooking classes, part of the Pantry to Plate program, focus on seasonal produce during harvest and pantry staples in winter.
The initiative aims to address food insecurity among nearly half of Utah college students, per a recent survey.

The big picture

Utah Valley University's initiative reflects a broader trend among higher education institutions to address student food insecurity through on-campus resources. As the state's largest university, UVU's program could serve as a model for other institutions facing similar challenges. The integration of fresh produce from the GRIT Garden highlights a growing emphasis on sustainable, community-driven solutions in student support services.

What we're watching

Program Scalability: Whether UVU can sustain the cooking classes and garden produce initiative amid growing student demand.
Funding Sustainability: How the university will finance the program's expansion, given its reliance on student and community support.
Impact Measurement: The pace at which UVU can quantify the program's success in reducing food insecurity among students.