{"id":20710,"date":"2025-11-05T12:02:23","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T12:02:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/?p=20710"},"modified":"2025-10-22T12:02:43","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T11:02:43","slug":"kick-off-the-new-academic-year-with-simple-sustainable-food-choices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/kick-off-the-new-academic-year-with-simple-sustainable-food-choices\/","title":{"rendered":"Kick Off the New Academic Year with Simple, Sustainable Food Choices"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The new academic year is here, and it\u2019s the perfect time to think about the little choices we make every day, especially when it comes to food. Even tiny changes can make a real difference for the planet, and for your health! Don\u2019t worry, I\u2019m not asking you to go full-on vegan; it\u2019s all about little steps that add up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>1. Plant-Based Swaps<br>You don\u2019t have to give up meat! Try swapping one meal a day with a plant-based option. Lentil curry, veggie stir-fry, or a chickpea salad are tasty, filling, and student friendly. Bonus: your friends might ask for the recipe and think you\u2019re a pro in the kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"902\" height=\"355\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-20718\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-1.jpeg 902w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-1-300x118.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-1-768x302.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 902px) 100vw, 902px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Image description: a woman&#8217;s hand holding a fork over a vegetable-based roast dinner<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>2. Reduce Food Waste<br>We\u2019ve all bought too much food and let it go to waste. Plan your meals for the week and freeze leftovers. You\u2019ll save money, cut unnecessary emissions, and avoid any strange fridge science experiments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"902\" height=\"390\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-4.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-20734\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-4.jpeg 902w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-4-300x130.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-4-768x332.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 902px) 100vw, 902px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Image description: six jars holding various dishes from chia seeds to rice and granola.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>3. Go Local &amp; Seasonal<br>Buying seasonal produce helps the environment and tastes great. CCCU has a Refillable Van (Augustine House: last Thursday, 11:30\u201312:30; Verena Holmes: 1\u20133pm) where you can grab refillable and reusable goodies. Fresh, budget-friendly, and good for the planet, win-win!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"902\" height=\"514\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-5.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-20730\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-5.jpeg 902w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-5-300x171.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-5-768x438.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 902px) 100vw, 902px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Image description: the Refillable Van that attends campus every month.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>4. Mindful Snacking<br>Long day of lectures? It\u2019s tempting to grab a snack from Touchdown Caf\u00e9 or The Food Court. But all that packaging adds up. Keep nuts, seeds, or fruit in a reusable container. Easy, tasty, and better for the environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"902\" height=\"297\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-3.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-20726\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-3.jpeg 902w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-3-300x99.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-3-768x253.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 902px) 100vw, 902px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Image description: circular containers of nuts, fruits and chocolate snacks.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>5. Make It Social<br>Sustainable eating doesn\u2019t have to be lonely! Cook with flatmates, share tips with friends, or start \u201cMeatless Mondays\u201d in your accommodation. Doing it together makes it fun, and you might even inspire others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"909\" height=\"313\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-2.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-20722\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-2.jpeg 909w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-2-300x103.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/image-2-768x264.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 909px) 100vw, 909px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Image description: three people cooking together in a dark kitchen<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Small changes really add up. Why not pick <em>one<\/em> new sustainable choice a week and see where it takes you? And if you want, check out the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.canterbury.ac.uk\/about-us\/social-and-environmental-responsibilities\/environment-and-sustainability\/academy-for-sustainable-futures\">Student Green Office campaigns<\/a>, join the <a href=\"mailto:fl162@canterbury.ac.uk\">plant-based petition<\/a>, or get involved in sustainability events on campus. Every little step helps build a greener, healthier community for all.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>By Aleya Bashar, BSc Food Science and Nutrition Student<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The new academic year is here, and it\u2019s the perfect time to think about the little choices we make every day, especially when it comes to food. Even tiny changes [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":331329,"featured_media":20738,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,66],"tags":[334,366,838,1126,1942,2014,2082],"class_list":["post-20710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","category-sustainability-engagement","tag-canterbury-christ-church-university","tag-cccusustainability","tag-food","tag-healthy-food","tag-student-blogger","tag-sustainability","tag-sustainable-food"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"authorName":"Bethany Climpson","featuredImage":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/669\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-10-22-115453.jpg","postExcerpt":"The new academic year is here, and it\u2019s the perfect time to think about the little choices we make every day, especially when it comes to food. Even tiny changes [&hellip;]","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20710","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/331329"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20710"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20710\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20742,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20710\/revisions\/20742"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20710"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20710"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/sustainability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20710"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}