The Food First program is gearing up to fill students’ pantries this year with a series of events and initiatives designed to support those experiencing food insecurity.

The program’s Launch event, which takes place Tuesday, Sept. 17 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Rankin Family Pavilion, will feature the term’s first Pay-What-You-Can Pop-Up Market as well as the debut of the Black Student Success Centre’s (BSSC) new You First: Prioritizing the Fundamental Needs of Students program.

Food First is a partnership between the Brock University Students’ Union, Graduate Students’ Association and Brock University. The program provides students in need with local grocery store gift cards as well as connections to community resources and other programming related to food security.

Food First Pay-What-You-Can Pop-Up Markets offer a chance for students, staff, faculty and alumni to buy low- or no-cost produce with the proceeds going towards buying produce and pantry staples for future markets.

The BSSC You First program will provide personal supplies to Black students. The program is accepting products and monetary donations to create care packages of hair care and beauty supplies, menstrual products and more. Pay-what-you-can cultural pantry items and snacks will also be available at the Centre once a month. More details will be shared through the BSSC website.

Food First is also supporting a Grab-n-Go program at Brock’s Burlington Campus. As well as accessing Food First supports at the main campus, Burlington students can pick up healthy snacks, smoothies and sandwiches once a week from mid-September. The Grab-n-Go program is run by the Brock Teacher Candidate Liaison Council (BTCLC) with the help of volunteers and donors.

This year, the Food First working group plans to launch a series of Food First Community Cook Along events that will bring together students and volunteers in a campus kitchen to cook healthy recipes, learn culinary skills, share tips for making the most of their grocery budgets and share a meal. Participants will be able to take home extra meal portions to enjoy later in the week or freeze for future use.

The pilot event takes place Wednesday, Oct. 2 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. in the staff lounge on the second floor of the International Centre. There is a $5 fee to participate, and registration through ExperienceBU is required due to limited space.

Brock faculty and staff can support the launch of the program by donating funds as well as new or gently used kitchen equipment. A list of requested equipment is available on ExperienceBU.

Kitchen items can be dropped off at the Student Life Involvement Commons in MCA 204 until Friday, Sept. 27 or brought directly to the Rankin Family Pavilion during the Food First Launch event on Sept. 17.

Financial donations to purchase kitchen equipment can made online. Donations can be allocated to the program by selecting “Other” from the “Please select the designation of your gift” drop down and specifying Community Cook Along in the text box below.