Healthy Food Lifestyles for University Students
Insights from Utrecht
Who Are We?
We are Alberto, Joost & Willem, three students at Utrecht University studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics. As part of our program, we have gone out into our community in an effort to better understand the challenges that students face in maintaining healthy food lifestyles. This webpage is dedicated to our findings and continuing the community discourse on the topic. We hope you find our insights interesting, and more importantly, that you contribute to the discussion by reaching out!
Our Findings:
When examining this topic, we have had various conversations with community actors ranging from local politicians, to sustainable food organizations to UU professors and even to your everyday student. Overall, there was clear consensus on the importance of healthy eating - not only for your physical health, but also mental wellbeing. Good food is a way into a broader community, and when you eat good food, you just feel better! That being said, we can distill our findings into two main points: healthy food opportunities are out there, but there is a lack of connection between these opportunities and the broader student body.
Myriad of Opportunities
Believe it or not, there are lots of ways for students to get involved in healthier food lifestyles. Whether that is through student-led initiatives like Groentetas, local organizations like Local2Local, or even community startups like the forthcoming JarJar project - opportunities abound.
Missing Connection
The persistent challenge is the lack of connection between the university and its students. We see varying degrees of this around the world - in the US, the diet of students is controlled via their cafetieria system. In Spain, it is a little more relaxed, but the canteens provide many options. But here in the Netherlands, there is a definite lack of initiative on the part of the University in encouraging healthy food lifestyles. Check out our editorial for more information.
Local Organizations
Opportunities to get involved!
Groentetas
This organization is student-led in Utrecht, and it connects students to the produce of local farmers. For just 7 euros, you get a bag full of locally and sustainable produced veggies, along with great recipe suggestions! This is how we got our food for the video seen earlier in this website.
Local2Local
This company acts as the intermediary between farmers and other outside organizations, like Groentetas. However, individuals and organizations can also go directly through L2L and purchase locally sourced products for their event or individual needs.
Grounded
This is a volunteer-based organization that is focused on sustainable living and social awareness. Grounded provides great opportunities to get involved in the sustainable food community, and they organize all sorts of great events!
Local opportunities
Organizations and events to get started with your healthy food lifestyle!
Groentetas - Easy, student access to locally sourced fruits and vegetables​
Local2Local - Company focused on locally sourcing food for organizations
Grounded - Volunteer organization that focuses, among other things, sustainable and healthy eating
Vredenburg Market - Local market in main Utrecht square, hosting fresh produce at reasonable prices
Healthy Meal: Easy, affordable, delicious
This video discusses our experiences during this project, as well as showing how easy it is to put together a healthy meal in no time! Using a delicious Groentetas bag, we were able to put together a delicious beetroot carpaccio alongside some honey-lemon roasted vegetables.
Join the Conversation!
Please fill out the form below and share any additional organizations you have found, or just any thoughts you have on the topic! We'd love to hear from you