UA Campus Pantry

What UA Campus Pantry does

UA Campus Pantry is a 503(c)3 nonprofit, student-run supplemental grocery program chartered in Spring 2012 at the University of Arizona in Tucson. It serves UA students, faculty, and staff, providing free access to produce, non-perishables, dairy, eggs, bread, frozen goods, and hygiene items via a point-based distribution system that uses a CatCard swipe for access with no income qualification or recorded personal information. The program runs a main distribution at the Student Union Memorial Center Sonora Room (2-3 days/week), a satellite location at the Health Sciences Library (Campus Pantry North, Thursdays), a pre-order Pantry Pick-Up service built on JotForm, a Pop-Up Pantry Box program placed across campus departments, and a sustainability-themed Bulk Foods program that uses reusable jars. It also operates an approved TEFAP site in partnership with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona and provides SNAP application navigation support through Health Arizona Plus.

The operation is administratively housed in UA's Basic Needs Center and Services under Associated Students of the University of Arizona (ASUA), with two full-time professional staff (Dr. Bridgette Riebe as Assistant Director and Pete McGraw as Senior Coordinator) augmented by multiple student leadership roles (Student Director, Distribution Chair, Operations and Volunteer Chair, Outreach Chair, Drive Chair, Graduate Assistant, Graphic Designer). The technology stack is deliberately lightweight: JotForm for online ordering, Google Forms for volunteer sign-up, Google Sheets for a Tucson-wide food resource guide, Google Maps for box location visualization, and an Amazon Wishlist for in-kind donations. No proprietary software, no API, and no app are present.

The revenue model is non-commercial and diversified across monetary donations (via UA Foundation, ASUA drop-off, and mail), in-kind food donations from university and community partners (Shamrock Foods, Swire Coca-Cola, CALES Greenhouses), institutional allocations (UA President's Office, Student Services Fee, Campus Sustainability Fund), and grants (HSI Initiatives Program). Pricing is zero-cost to all eligible users; go-to-market is community-led through campus-based physical distribution and organic social channels (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok). The organization supports ~5,100 unique users per year at roughly 2,200 weekly visits during the academic year, and addresses the broader statistic that one in three college students experience food insecurity.

Name

UA Campus Pantry

Legal name

UA Campus Pantry (a 503(c)3 nonprofit)

Website

https://campuspantry.arizona.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

UA Campus Pantry is a student-run 503(c)3 nonprofit supplemental grocery program at the University of Arizona in Tucson. It distributes free food, hygiene items, and menstrual products via CatCard access to UA students, faculty, and staff across multiple campus channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Campus Food Pantry Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Campus/Institutional Convenience Stores (University/Hospital) (CRAHABAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Campus Bookstore-Adjacent Retail (Snacks, Beverages, Essentials) (EDALADAE), Retail Dining & Quick Service (On-Campus) (EDALADAB)

Keywords

• Campus food pantry
• Student basic needs
• Supplemental grocery program
• University food assistance
• Food insecurity services

Headquarters

HQ city

Tucson

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Monetary Donations: The Campus Pantry accepts monetary donations through online portal (University of Arizona Foundation), in-person drop-off at ASUA Front Desk, and mail-in checks. These funds are used to purchase weekly non-perishable orders from local grocery stores and perishable items from the Student Union Warehouse.
2. In-Kind Food Donations: Food donations come from UA clubs, UA organizations, community organizations, food drives, and individual donors. In-kind donations include non-perishable items and produce.
3. Institutional Funding: Funding from multiple sources including University of Arizona President's Office, Student Services Fee, Campus Sustainability Fund, individual donations, and grants. HSI Initiatives Program provides annual funding for food distributions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

UA Campus Pantry is a student-run 503(c)3 nonprofit supplemental grocery program that distributes free food to University of Arizona students, faculty, and staff with a valid CatCard. The core service is a point-based in-person distribution at the Student Union Memorial Center, complemented by a satellite location, an online pre-order pickup service, pop-up boxes across campus, and a sustainability-focused bulk dispensing program.

Product overview

UA Campus Pantry is a student-run 503(c)(3) nonprofit food assistance program chartered in Spring 2012 at the University of Arizona. Its core offering is the Campus Pantry main food distribution service, which operates on a point-based system from the Student Union Memorial Center. The program extends its reach through complementary service modules: Campus Pantry North (a satellite distribution location in the Health Sciences Library), Pantry Pick-Up (a pre-order food bag service), the Pop-Up Pantry Box Program (an unmanned take-one-leave-one box network across campus), and Bulk Foods (a sustainable bulk dispensing program using reusable jars and a point system). The portfolio also includes TEFAP (a monthly federal food box program via the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona) and SNAP Benefits Assistance (application navigation support for federal nutrition benefits). Recipe Recommendations content supports users in utilizing distributed food items. All services are accessible with a UA CatCard to students, faculty, and staff, with visits capped at two per week across all services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Bulk Foods: A Campus Pantry project funded by the Office of Sustainability that focuses on minimizing plastic-packaged items while increasing product variety. Users receive jars and spice containers to fill with dry goods and spices.
• Campus Pantry North
• Pantry Pick-Up
• Pop-Up Pantry Box Program
• TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program)

Products and services

• Campus Pantry (Main Distribution) The primary food distribution service operated from the Student Union Memorial Center Sonora Room, providing supplemental groceries including produce, non-perishables, dairy, bread, eggs, frozen goods, and hygiene items to UA students, faculty, and staff at no cost using a point-based system. Users swipe their CatCard for access and are limited to two of three available service days per week.
• Campus Pantry North A satellite food distribution location in the Health Sciences Library (Room 1152) serving the north campus community. Offers pre-packed food bag options (Staples, Easy Meal, Hot Meal, Vegan, Gluten-Free, and Custom bags) plus four pieces of produce. Counts as one of the two weekly Campus Pantry visits.
• Pantry Pick-Up A customized food bag order service available at both the main Campus Pantry and Campus Pantry North. Users place personalized orders via JotForm and collect them during allotted time frames, providing an accessible alternative to attending in-person distribution hours.
• Pop-Up Pantry Box Program A take-what-you-need, leave-what-you-can box program placing unopened non-perishables and menstrual products in departments across the UA campus. Operates without scheduled hours, enabling anytime access for students, faculty, and staff across campus.
• Bulk Foods A sustainability-focused bulk dispensing program that reduces plastic packaging while expanding food variety. Users receive two large jars and two spice containers to keep permanently, filling them with dry goods (rice, beans, lentils, oats, flour, pasta) and spices (salt, pepper, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, and more) using a point system (large jar = 1 point, spice container = 0.5 points).
• TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) A federal TEFAP food box distribution program operated in partnership with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. Provides prepackaged food boxes containing produce, rice, grains, frozen items, and canned meats once per month to Arizona residents who meet income eligibility standards, at no cost. Does not count toward the two weekly Campus Pantry visits.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Community Food Bank of Southern ArizonacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary in-kind food donation partner providing surplus food and groceries. The Campus Pantry also partners with them for TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) distribution, becoming an official TEFAP site for the Spring 2025 semester.
• University of Arizona HSI Initiatives ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProudly supports the Campus Pantry annually by providing funding for food distributions. HSI (Hispanic Serving Institutions) Initiatives Program funding enables sustained food purchasing.
• Office of SustainabilitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunds the Bulk Foods program which minimizes plastic-packaged items while increasing product variety. Campus Sustainability Fund provides operational support.
• Shamrock FoodsminorOthersIn-kind food donation partner providing food products to support Campus Pantry operations.
• Swire Coca-ColaminorOthersIn-kind donation partner providing beverage products for Campus Pantry distributions.
• Student Union WarehouseminorOthersSource for perishable food items purchased with donated funds on a weekly basis.
• CALES Greenhouses and Rooftop GreenhouseminorOthersUniversity of Arizona agricultural facilities providing produce donations.
• Arizona Department of Economic SecuritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRetains TEFAP participant documentation through secure online platform for the federal emergency food assistance program.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Feeding America: National umbrella network of 200+ food banks and the largest U.S. hunger-relief organization. Broader incumbent in the food assistance space providing the federal TEFAP supply chain that UA Campus Pantry accesses through regional food banks.
• Meals on Wheels America: National nonprofit network providing food and nutrition services to seniors and vulnerable populations. Broader incumbent in food assistance with a different target demographic but overlapping operational model of last-mile food distribution supported by donations and government programs.

Emerging players

• WhyHunger: Advocacy and resource-connection nonprofit that maintains a national Find Food directory and supports grassroots food justice organizations. Adjacent peer with overlapping anti-hunger mission and similar reliance on community partnerships.
• Hungry Harvest: Mission-driven produce delivery service fighting food waste and food insecurity through subscription produce boxes. Emerging player with partial overlap - addresses food insecurity and food waste like UA Campus Pantry's Bulk Foods program, but through a paid subscription e-commerce model.

Direct peers

• Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona: Regional food bank partnering with UA Campus Pantry for TEFAP distribution. Direct peer and primary supply chain partner; comparable mission of distributing food to those experiencing food insecurity in the same Tucson/Southern Arizona service area.
• The Campus Kitchens Project: Student-powered nonprofit that recovers surplus food and prepares meals for community members facing hunger. Direct peer in the student-led anti-hunger space, complementing the pantry model with food recovery.
• Food Recovery Network: National student movement recovering surplus food from college dining halls to redistribute to communities in need. Direct peer serving overlapping populations through a related but complementary model of student-led food redistribution.
• Swipe Out Hunger: National nonprofit focused specifically on college student food insecurity, supporting campus pantries and meal swipe programs at universities. Directly comparable mission and target population to UA Campus Pantry, with a broader national footprint and grant-making capacity.
• College & University Food Bank Alliance (CUFBA): National alliance of more than 600 campus food pantries, of which UA Campus Pantry is implicitly a peer member organization. Direct industry peer representing the same basic model of student-run campus grocery assistance at universities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/uacampuspantry
• Instagraminstagram.com/uacampuspantry?igsh=NGM4NjR2ZHRzcjBn&utm_source=qr
• TikToktiktok.com/@uacampuspantry?_t=8mXyeXPQIwg&_r=1
• Xx.com/UACampusPantry
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ua-campus-pantry

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about UA Campus Pantry