The University of Arizona Campus Pantry is a student-run supplemental grocery program that serves students, faculty, and staff. It’s designed to fight food insecurity on campus. Recent highlights show that the need for food support is growing.
The Campus Pantry averaged about 2,000 visits per week during the 2024-25 school year. With the fall semester just about a month away, staff are already preparing for what could be another busy school year.
The Campus Pantry is a nonprofit funded in part by donations, grants, and the institution. Anyone with a CatCard, which is the U of A’s official ID card, can get food. Each item is worth a specific number of points; people can get as many items as needed as long as it doesn't go over the points allotted for that day.
“The thing about food insecurity is it comes in like a lot of different ways that you don't notice. Oftentimes, it's not just like economic barriers to food, it's transportation. It's not having access to cultural foods that people are used to like at home and abroad," said Anna Bogstad, distribution chair for the Campus Pantry.
Student workers tell me more people are visiting the pantry than ever before. They had over 50,000 visits this past school year.
“It's definitely like record-breaking, like it increases as the years go on because we see a lot more new students, especially like incoming freshmen," said Brianna Ortiz, graduate assistant for the Campus Pantry.
The pantry is designed like a mini-store to give people the experience of shopping for fresh produce and non-perishable food items.
“We provide, like, staple items. So, we have, like, peanut butter and jelly cereal, like, easy meal items. We also have, like, a lot of snack items, especially since a lot of students are like, you know, in between classes and they need like a quick snack before their next class," said Ortiz.
Although the Campus Pantry is a short-term solution, workers can assist people in signing up for benefits like SNAP.
“We're here to help as much as we can," Ortiz said. "And you know, we're here to empower students to utilize these amazing resources.”
There are several ways to help support the Campus Pantry. Click here for details, hours, and locations.
The U of A's Campus Closet is also located within the Campus Pantry at the Student Union. Casual and business clothes are available and are offered on a similar points system.
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Jacqueline Aguilar is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born and raised in Yuma, AZ., she is no stranger to the unforgiving Arizona heat. Now this U of A wildcat is excited to be back in Tucson and is looking forward to involving herself in the community. Share your story ideas with Jacqueline by emailing jacqueline.aguilar@kgun9.com or connecting on Facebook, Instagram or X.
