Sustain support up for grabs to student food enterprises
Sustain, in partnership with NUS, are offering support and start-up costs for students in universities and colleges across the UK. As part of the UK wide ‘Our Bright Future’ programme students will be encouraged to set up their own food co-ops or buying groups, vegetable bag schemes as well as other small enterprises such as preserve making groups.
As part of this, Sustain will be working with NUS to support thirty new student-led enterprises based on local and sustainable food. We want to help students go from growing food at the heart of their campuses to creating food enterprises such as food co-ops or buying groups, veg box schemes and preserve making groups. Plunkett Foundation and Soil Association are suporting other student food enterprises, including farmers' markets.
Applications are now open!
Visit the NUS Student Eats website to view the eligibility criteria, FAQ’s and to apply using the online application forms for food buying groups/vegetable bag schemes and preserve making groups.
Join the free pre-application support webinar session on Friday 14th October 12.30-1.30pm.
Contact Tilly Jarvis, tilly@sustainweb.org, Sustain's Student Food Entperrise officer for more information.
Why students? Why food enterprises?
Through the NUS’s 600 member students' unions the interests of more than seven million students are represented. Supporting students to set up sustainable food enterprises gives them, as well as the institution’s staff and local communities, access to fresh affordable food whilst providing the students with real-life experience of setting up and running a business. This clearly enhances students’ employability skills such as leadership, project management and effective team-working giving them greater chances to secure employment in the future.
On a wider level it is a significant opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of buying sustainable food, to develop community partnerships and to support the local economy.
Sign up to the Student Eats ‘Our Bright Future’ mailing list here and like the facebook page to get all the latest information.
Our Bright Future
Our Bright Future is a £33 million programme funded by the Big Lottery Fund and is comprised of a portfolio of 31 projects run by a consortium of eight organisations led by The Wildlife Trusts.
Our Bright Future aims to tackle three big challenges facing society today - a lack of social cohesion, a lack of opportunities for young people and vulnerability to climate change. Thirty one youth-led projects across the UK are each receiving around £1m of funding to give young people the skills and knowledge to improve their local environments – from reducing marine pollution to minimising food waste.
This young, ambitious and capable movement is ensuring this generation’s voice is heard in the current debates around environmental improvements and a resource-efficient economy.
Published Monday 1 August 2016
Food Co-ops: Building community wealth, supporting the planet and championing farmers.
