Food Day 2012 at NYU was a true homage to food. All parts of the production and application of creating healthy dishes were represented throughout the day by various groups.

The Student Food Cooperative at NYU catered a lunch and hosted a roundtable discussion of real food and sustainability at the Puck Building on Lafayette Street. Sam Fishman, a CAS senior and a member of the Student Food Cooperative, discussed how the co-op provides an alternative, natural dining option for the NYU community.

“It provides local, fresh, organic and ethical food sources to the students at a low cost,” Fishman said.

The co-op encourages students to get involved with the production of their food. In joining the co-op, students learn about the seasonality of their food, as all the produce comes from local farms. This type of buying is sustainable and provides the consumer with more nutrients, which abound in fresh, organic, non-genetically modified foods.

Chefs for Schools, an NYU club dedicated to promoting healthy eating for all social classes, ran a healthy recipe competition. Michelle Tymchuk won, with a Caramel Apple Grilled Cheese. Her recipe was featured in sample bites throughout the afternoon.

Then, the Community Agriculture Club led a workshop on composting and preparing your garden for winter. Christina Ciambriello, a graduate student in the food studies program and a member of the co-executive board of the club, guided a tour in NYU’s community garden, which is on the south side of Third Street.  Although harvest season is coming to a close, produce like peppers, eggplants and overripe okra were plentiful.

Participants tilled the earth and set cover crops down to restore the nutrition balance in the soil for the spring. Wen Wang, a Steinhardt alumna was enlightened by this experience.

“I’ve never really planted before, but learning about growing our own food is very useful,” she said.

Nikki Mokrzycki, a senior in CAS and on the co-president for the Community Agriculture Club, said the food culture at NYU has created a sense of community that so many feel the university lacks.

“All my friends I have met through getting involved in the food community here at NYU,” she said. “There are so many events and clubs to get involved in surrounding healthy, sustainable food production that it really lends itself to becoming that small intimate community within the larger university.”

Food Day was a celebration of real food, and aimed to create a healthier, sustainable lifestyle and community where food is cherished rather than simply consumed.

Kim Buesser is a contributing writer. Email her at [email protected].