Cash-strapped UOW students eating less and relying on campus food pantry

As upbeat as the University of Wollongong campus has been during Orientation Week, cost-of-living concerns bubble not far under the surface.

And this is where the uni's Pulse Pantry has taken some of the load for students, explains April Alexander.

Even so, the head of student engagement and marketing for the UOW Pulse said, demand still outstrips anything the pantry can offer and continues to rise.

"It's been very popular, we get hundreds of students coming through and we're only open twice a week," Ms Alexander said.

"The demand is definitely greater than we can cater for."

The pantry was first developed during the COVID years to support students on campus who could not work. Uni staff created a pool of vital and non-perishable items, packaged them up and delivered them to students in a safe space.

"The response was overwhelming, it was so successful and well received that it's still operational today and it isn't looking like it's going anywhere."

The primary goals for the pantry, Ms Alexander said, was to reduce food insecurity, address period poverty, and help alleviate financial hardship among UOW students.

"It's about providing the product to the person to make sure that they're eating something solid and something healthy, rather than getting those quick, non-nutritious cheap foods," she said.

Meanwhile coming to terms with the day-to-day cost of living is in the forefront of first-year student Anika Smith.

The Bachelor of Primary Education student said her move to Wollongong had been an expensive one, especially when combining the cost of rent, the first big shop and cost of fuel for weekend trips home.

"I'm not going to be driving home to Ulladulla as much because fuel is expensive and you'd have to factor in around $80 a week.

"I live at Kooloobong so it's really easy to just walk here so I'm not going to use my car as much," she said.

Her friend Sarah Wheeler is focusing on what matters, so she's cutting back and being disciplined when getting her groceries.

"I see how much food is increasing in price and, after doing my first big shop this week, I realised how expensive everything is even after picking the cheap options," she said.

"So I'm going to focus on the main proteins and cut back on most of the snacks and foods that aren't healthy for me, prioritising nutritious foods and healthy foods instead."

Ms Wheeler said prioritising healthy foods wasn't the cheap way to do things and so she's reducing her portion sizes to make it affordable.

"If you're having breakfast and you choose to have cheese and toast, you might just have one piece instead or like one muffin or something," she said.

Bachelor student Adeline Ung is thankful for the many free university services and activities available on campus.

"I've found the free buses quite helpful, especially when they help you get to the main general places where you want to get your supplies or want to go out to," she said.

"The activities on campus are definitely great for saving money on food because when it comes to socialising, you tend to spend 10 bucks here and there, so events like these are really helpful for us."

Ms Alexander explains UOW Pulse, a not for profit organisation, was one of the many groups that delivered student activities and services on campus.

Ms Alexander said there was lots happening at the university during O-Week - from the Wellness Wednesday activities, to the bulk-billed health and medical services on campus, to free weekly activities like yoga and craft catch-ups on offer.

"There are many support services and opportunities for students, from financial counsellors if they're having financial hardships, to legal services if they're having issues with a landlord or something and more," she said.

"There's just so much there on offer for students, it's just about finding someone and asking for help, if they need to."

Ms Alexander said on campus there was also the creative cooking workshop that taught students how to cook budget friendly nutritious meals, as well as the popular, Pulse Pantry, that enabled students every week to collect free items of food and sanitary items.