SA service set to launch a new tool at all major campuses.
The Student Nutrition Access Program (SNAP) will soon be rolling out a new way for students to get what they need.
The SNAP “After Hours Food Access Program” with the use of the BlueBox food lockers, will be available on all three major campuses for students who have registered for this SNAP service.
SNAP coordinator, Ruka Watanabe says that this program will help cater to the needs of students, “who have evening classes and can only make it to the campus during the evening times after the staff pantry has closed.”
“So, we are hoping that by introducing this, it will expand student’s access to food support beyond the 10 a.m. [to] 4 p.m. operational hours of SNAP.”
Watanabe attributes the program as the brainchild of Ronnie Cruz, equity and advocacy manager for the Student Association (SA). Watanabe shares that Cruz was inspired by the community fridges across Toronto that allow the community to have access to food and also give back when possible.
The lockers are being funded by BrandActive which is a management consulting company based in Toronto. The manufacturing company BlueBox as part of their effort to give back to the community.
“They believe in supporting students and recognize how big of a concern food insecurity is, that’s why they are willing to support us,” says Watanabe.
All current GBC students will be eligible for the service but must have completed the SNAP Pantry Registration and the Daily Bread Client enrollment forms. They will then receive approval from the team to access the program services.
The lockers will be in operation for 24 hours on the scheduled days and the students will be able to access their food and produce items provided the campus is open. Lockers will be cleaned and re-stocked the next day during the SNAP hours of operation.
The locker has seven spots available, which means the program will aim to serve as many students by appointment, via this method.
For students using the locker service, once an appointment has been made and approved by the SNAP team, they will be notified via text message along with a code when their food is ready for pickup.
Students can then collect their food using the digital user interface on the locker.
Similar to boxes used by Amazon, you will be prompted to enter the code which was provided earlier along with the notification. Once entered, a locker unit will open giving you access to the food designated for you that meets your dietary requirements and restrictions.
A key aspect that sets the BlueBox locker apart is that the cold food locker is refrigerated, which protects food items from spoiling and keeps them fresh until retrieval. The added layer of security through one-time codes sent directly to the students ensures that the program is not abused and no food is wasted.
Despite how good the lockers look at the campus grounds ready to serve students, SNAP had to face a lot of logistical challenges.
One key issue was finding an accessible place that was secure as well.
Watanabe is eager to see the success of the program so that it can gain traction and lead to more accessible food programs.
“Ideally it will be great to have multiple (food lockers) in different places of the campuses, but again that’s all dependent on funding and how this one runs.”
Students are advised to visit SNAP for additional information on the new program and guided use of the lockers.
