The UNB SRC has announced an exciting new service for students!

What is it?

Smart Bags are by-weekly food bag handouts. These bags are guaranteed to be filled with 2-3 days worth of food. The best part is, it’s completely free!

How it works:

Handouts occur everything second Tuesday from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at the SRC office which is located in room 206 in the Thomas J Condon Student Center.

You must register in advance in order to collect your Smart Bag.

To register for a bag students can use the link in the SRC’s Instagram bio or use a QR code on a poster around campus. 

The link to register can be found here. 

Registration for the following handout opens the day of the current handout and is open for a week (Tuesday to Thursday). Registration closes the Tuesday before the next handout at noon. In other words, make sure to register at least a week in advance.

Angel Côté, the Wellness Coordinator for the SRC emphasized, “We will also be posting reminders on our social media of when the form reopens.”

Here is the schedule for handouts and registration deadlines:

Why food bags?

Angel Côté spoke about why the SRC chose to take on this project saying, “Unfortunately, food insecurity is a major issue students face on campus. Without access to food, students cannot focus on their studies or perform their best. Just think how difficult it is to focus in class or work on an assignment on an empty stomach.”

She continued, “The SRC team has been brainstorming ways to better utilize our resource center and find a new solution that all students could better benefit from. One of the responsibilities of the wellness coordinator is to run and maintain the resource center. The idea of the SRC Smart Bags then came into discussion. Other universities have a similar program; however, students must pay for their bags, and it is mostly fresh produce. I wanted to create a new program that is free of charge and that even residence students that cannot cook could use.”

How this program is possible

Angel Côté commented on the process of developing this program saying, “Devin Debly and I have been working on the details of this program for a few weeks, however, our SRC Smart Bag program would not have been possible without the help from UNB Associated Alumni. They are providing the necessary funds for us to start this program. We would like to greatly thank them for their generous help!”

Other notes

Bags can be prepared with special accommodations for allergies or dietary restrictions. Be sure to mention any restrictions while you are registering!

For further information, please contact Angel at wellness@unbsrc.ca.

Keep an eye on the SRC social media pages for updates and don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity if you are in need!