A suggested that one in three Australians experience food insecurity. The particular issues facing students have received less attention, however.

Student food insecurity has become an increasingly pressing problem over the past 15 years. Studies from the 2010s and early 2020s typically suggested that about 40 per cent of Australian university students experienced food insecurity and roughly 10 per cent were hungry. But these figures have increased rapidly in the past three years. A study shows that severe food insecurity rose from 17 per cent to 29 per cent among Australian students between 2022 and 2024.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and international students are than other students to experience food insecurity, but it is a problem from which no group of students at Australian universities is immune. And the food retail environments on most campuses may not be conducive to addressing the problem: full meals commonly cost A$15 (£7.45), with healthy options especially expensive.

Campus resource: A food pantry can help support your campus through the cost-of-living crisis

We seem to have arrived at a situation where there is a gap between, on the one hand, what students learn about nutrition, equity and sustainability in the classroom and, on the other, the campus food environments they encounter – leading them routinely to voice concerns about those environments.

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In many universities elsewhere in the world, universities have developed campus food environments that, while not perfect, provide some protection against student food insecurity. Across continental Europe, Latin America and southern and eastern Asia, it is common for universities to provide students with subsidised food, delivered in a canteen setting.

In Japanese universities, for example, canteens typically focus on nutrition, varied dietary requirements, and flexibility – allowing users to eat in, take away or bring their own food. Canteens are often characterised by a focus on sustainability, student co-design and co-mingling between students, staff and people from local communities. Universities have also used their design to address concerns about the environment, social justice and indigenous issues.

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Offering solutions to food insecurity was often the practice on Australian campuses, too, until the 1990s, and it persists at many of residential complexes. And recognition of its ongoing importance is starting to be prompted by international examples, as well as by recognition of the breadth of food insecurity in Australia.

For example, the University of Melbourne opened two campus canteens this year, one on its Parkville campus and another at Southbank. These offer students heavily subsidised A$5 meat or vegetarian/vegan hot meals (A$12 for non-students). Crucially, with opening hours between 8am and 8pm, the canteens offer substantial and nutritious food for breakfast, lunch and dinner, a rarity in a context where most food outlets on campus close by mid-afternoon.

Hundreds of students come every day, with an even split between domestic and international and undergraduate and graduate. Indeed, the canteen is so heavily used that the university has not had to waste a single leftover meal, and student feedback has been very positive. Some of the students also work there, as part of Melbourne’s  internship programme, aimed at building employability skills and earning opportunities.

But canteens might not be a one-size-fits-all solution to student food insecurity. In our research, we have met many students who are surviving on less than A$40 a week for food – and these students cannot even afford a A$5 meal. Moreover, while canteens can assist in addressing issues that students face on campus, food insecurity off campus is also a major issue. This is why many universities and student-run organisations provide food relief to students, including free meals, food pantries, and the provision of tokens, sometimes partnering with external organisations. 

There are still significant debates around food relief, such as whether universities should be engaging in food charity at all – not least because of its potential impact on the dignity of those obliged to accept it. But food relief remains critical in lieu of other reforms that tackle student poverty.

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Nutrition might seem a somewhat peripheral concern for institutions whose core business is teaching and learning. But studies show that food insecurity students’ academic performance, well-being, physical and mental health, sleep and social relationships. 

The links between food security and ability to study effectively are especially . No one can expect students to digest food for thought on an empty belly. In that sense, a subsidised, open-all-hours canteen should be seen as no less integral to an Australian university campus than a well-stocked, open-all-hours library.

is a professor in social geography and d’ment geography at the University of Melbourne.

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is an associate lecturer in geography at the University of Melbourne.

is a graduate researcher at the University of Melbourne.

is deputy vice-chancellor (international) and senior vice-president at Monash University.

is associate professor (food politics and policy) at the University of Melbourne.

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