Last month, an N.C House committee met for the first time to address the problem of food deserts — areas without ready access to affordable, fresh and healthy food. As surprising as it might be, this term applies to the UNC campus.
Therefore, there is no time like the present for the University to take action and squash its status as a food desert.
Students who live on campus and do not have a meal plan often have few places to turn in terms of healthy food options. Lenoir Mainstreet is open through lunch, but when the clock strikes 3 p.m., the options are limited.
The current options on campus lack any type of truly fresh food. Franklin Street’s Walgreens and CVS offer groceries, but even these options are extremely limited. The nearest grocery stores to campus are Whole Foods and Weaver Street — a daunting walk or bus ride for students without a car.
While the General Assembly should heed the advice of those presenting to the committee and provide benefits to businesses that are willing to sell or increase fresh food options in areas classified as food deserts, UNC must also act to address the problem on campus.
There is obviously a need for some type of grocery store on campus — one that provides more than just canned goods and frozen meals.
UNC and Carolina Dining Services have done well to partner with student organizations such as Fair, Local, Organic — and it should look to do the same with the growing student-run cooperative grocery market The Sonder Market.
This partnership could help to fill the void while officials work to create a more permanent solution. While students have proven successful in the past, this is a problem that should not rest solely on their shoulders and warrants an institutional change.
