Reducing Food Waste and Fighting Food Insecurity in the Dining Halls: Nutrition Access Program

Students label packaged meals at Nutrition Access Program headquarters

Students label packaged meals at Nutrition Access Program headquarters. Photo: Joel Ninmann/University Housing.

At UW–Madison’s six dining market locations, staff work hard to feed students by preparing buffet-style meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. To meet the expected demand and decrease food waste, dining market staff use data from annual food waste audits and Leanpath technology to carefully adjust recipe quantities.   Though these efforts have been effective at reducing waste, leftovers are often inevitable since demand varies, and staff need to provide enough food for all students eating in dining markets. So, what happens to unserved food at the end of the day?  To avoid unserved food from going to waste, University Housing Dining and Culinary Services created UW Frozen Foods in 2019, now known as the Nutrition Access Program (NAP).    Similar to the Food Recovery Network, NAP collects unserved food from dining markets. Then, NAP’s student directors coordinate with Badger Volunteers to conduct weekly packaging sessions. The unserved food is packaged into frozen and microwavable meals.   Once meals are packaged, NAP distributes them to UW–Madison students at no cost. Multiple times a week, students can pick up meals at three locations: The Crossing, Pres House, and First Congressional. A full schedule, including distribution times at each location, is available on Instagram at @nutritionaccessprogram as well as on NAP’s webpage. The program will be expanding to a fourth location, the Student Activities Center later this month. In addition to reducing food waste, NAP is also an important program for helping combat food insecurity on campus. The free, grab-and-go style distribution makes food accessible and affordable for students who may be struggling with food insecurity, while the reheatable, pre-packaged style of meals adds an element of convenience to the busy lives of students. Moreover, by recovering unserved food from dining markets, NAP prevents food waste and supports UW–Madison’s sustainability goal of zero waste by 2040.
During the 2024-2025 academic year, NAP recovered a total of 6,400 meals! 
Students assemble meal package at Nutrition Access Program headquarters.

Students assemble meal packages at Nutrition Access Program headquarters. Photo:Joel Ninmann/University Housing.

Get Involved  NAP relies on student volunteers to recover and package meals. If you are interested in eliminating food waste and food insecurity, consider Badger Volunteers to sign up for this opportunity! Questions can be sent to NAP via Instagram.   By: Tia Gaffney