Sustainable Food Program
UM Sustainable Food Program grows a community working for student food sovereignty.
Out of small actions like shared meals, events, and collective storytelling emerges a vision for an alternative system in which students produce, prepare, purchase, eat, and make meaning of food together.
This Student Life Sustainability program is led by a paid team of student leaders, a network of affiliated student organizations, and individual collaborators. Together, we leverage our connections and collective knowledge to develop innovative student-centered food sovereignty initiatives, while working closely with campus and community stakeholders.
“UMSFP never fails to bring rigor, intention, compassion, and care to building a more engaged and sustainable campus food system.”
Our Work
Farm Stand
UMSFP and the Campus Farm at Matthaei Botanical Gardens host a weekly Farm Stand.
- Every Thursday, 12-3 pm
- August through mid-November
- S Ingalls Mall
- Follow @umfarmstand on Instagram to see weekly produce availability!
Rooting for Change Café
This pop-up cafe and community space is located on the third floor of Palmer Commons for students to practice radical hospitality, share skills, and nurture their creativity to adapt to a changing climate. Once a month, the cafe hosts a hands-on arts workshop and serves a menu inspired by the workshop theme.
Bite-Sized: A Food-Themed Variety Show
This annual program hosts U-M students as they perform food-focused poems, dances, stand-up comedy, research presentations, and visual art creation in front of a live audience.
The Student Food Empowerment Fund
Funded by revenue from the Farm Stand, SFEF provides resources for food-focused educational events, culturally appropriate event menus, and long-term, innovative projects to support student food sovereignty on and off-campus. In the spring, this fund also reimburses students who want to grow food at home through the purchase of garden tools, soil, containers, and more.
HarvestFest
UMSFP’s signature event is an annual celebration of all things food and fall hosted on the Campus Farm at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens. HarvestFest welcomes student organizations, local businesses, bands, artists, and eaters to celebrate the abundance of fall.
The Underground
This literary and arts zine publishes food-related poetry, essays, photography, and recipes. Students and community members alike can submit materials for publication in Underground at any time by emailing theunderground@umich.edu.
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