VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Pete’s Giving Garden manager works to tackle food insecurity on campus
Autumn Ryan: Nutrition science master’s student Alyssa Quinn is planting with a purpose — growing fresh fruit, veggies, and herbs for students who need help filling their fridge.
Alyssa Quinn: Especially financially, being a college student alone is very complicated. And I know, like in my experience as an undergrad, it wasn’t always easy. So I think this is a great resource and opportunity for students to be able to take their power back a little bit and have one less worry on their plate.
Ryan: The various foods grown in the garden are stored at the campus food pantry in Hendricks Chapel. For Quinn, it’s rewarding to see her hard work pay off — knowing the food she grows is making it to students’ homes.
Quinn: So the food we produce here and bring to the food pantry is very fulfilling. And with that, there’s so much week to week in terms of the diversity of the produce that we’re bringing up, as there’s different seasonality of the produce here throughout the season.
Ryan: The garden does not only provide a source of food — it’s also a source of independence. Students can volunteer and learn how to grow their own food.
Quinn: I think it’s definitely a big proponent in self-efficacy, and that students can come here and they can put the work in to grow their own food so that they feel as a part of it. And they can definitely take back power in that sense a little bit.
Ryan: The independence cultivated at the garden extends to the pantry — where having access to a variety of fresh produce gives students the chance to try something new.
Lawrence Lam: But on my own being where like, I can decide when I want to make my own food. Now because I’m away from my parents. And so for me, I don’t want to say, like in a way, it kind of helped me grow in being that I was able to make my own decisions into what kind of what I wanted.
Ryan: The garden is one step in the right direction to help solve food insecurity. According to a 2024 study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, in 2020, 3.8 million college students reported experiencing food insecurity.
Quinn: And I think that you should definitely take advantage of the resources that are available to you, because they are provided to be there for you.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Pete’s Giving Garden at Syracuse University is helping combat food insecurity.
The student-run garden grows various fruits, vegetables and herbs that students can take home for free.
Alyssa Quinn is a nutrition science master’s student and one of the garden managers responsible for overseeing the entire garden and ensuring the produce is ready for students.
“We’re responsible for planting everything and making sure all the plant maintenance is going okay,” said Quinn. “We prune the tomatoes, and if a plant looks sick, we check on it. Along with maintenance and planting, we also harvest and bring the food to the pantry, and we handle communications with different campus partners — like landscaping — to get the materials we need to keep the garden running efficiently.”
The garden offers a wide variety of fresh produce to give students more options they may not typically have access to. Quinn said they try to grow anything they think students will like.
Some of the herbs available include oregano, sage and thyme. The vegetables include cucumbers, zucchinis, lettuce, okra, radishes and peppers.
Everything grown is stored at the Coach Mac Food Pantry in Hendricks Chapel and the South Campus Food Pantry at the Carriage House. Quinn said it’s rewarding to see her hard work pay off when students take home the fresh produce she’s grown.
“Especially financially, being a college student alone is very complicated. And I know, like in my experience as an undergrad, it wasn’t always easy. So I think this is a great resource and opportunity for students to be able to take their power back a little bit and have one less worry on their plate,” said Quinn.
Students aren’t only able to take the food home, but they can also volunteer on Tuesdays and Thursdays and learn how it’s grown. Quinn said by having students stop by the pantry to learn about how the food grows, it reduces some stigma around using a food pantry.
“I think it’s definitely a big proponent in self-efficacy, and that students can come here and they can put the work in to grow their own food so that they feel as a part of it. And they can definitely take back power in that sense a little bit,” said Quinn.
The wide range of fruit available to students gives them the opportunity to try new foods they may not usually eat. One recent graduate student, Lawrence Lam, said that using a food pantry gave him some independence.
“But on my own being where like, I can decide when I want to make my own food. Now because I’m away from my parents. And so for me…it kind of helped me grow in being able to make my own decisions into what kind of what I wanted,” said Lam.
Quinn sees the garden as more than just a place to grow food, but as somewhere for students to bond with one another.
“To just have a place that you can come and meet other people that you wouldn’t come across on campus or in the community otherwise. And you can make new connections with people that have similar interests with you beyond your major, which is very important, you know, as a student as well as a community member,” said Quinn.
Food insecurity is an issue at college campus all across the nation. According to a 2024 study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, in 2020, 3.8 million college students reported experiencing food insecurity.
“And I think that you should definitely take advantage of the resources that are available to you, because they are provided to be there for you,” said Quinn.
For students in need of fresh produce or other food this summer, the Coach Mac Pantry is open Tuesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. The South Campus Pantry is open Wednesdays from 1 to 3 p.m.