“Real Food Now!” is the rallying cry of a new generation of student leaders on college campuses this fall. In October, thousands of students on hundreds of campuses will participate in a national month of action, challenging their schools to invest in food that is healthy, local, fair, ecologically sound and humane. The month of action kicks off the Real Food Challenge, a new national campaign with the mission to build a student movement for just and sustainable food. As the international food crisis worsens, students from Hawaii to New Hampshire will organize grassroots “protest potlucks,” community teach-ins and real food roundtables, working locally and directly to address the problems in the global food system.

The Real Food Challenge has an ambitious goal: to redirect 20% of all food purchased by colleges and universities (currently $4 billion) to Real Food by 2020. Led by students, the campaign advocates collaboration, commitment and collective action as a means of transforming the university food service industry. The campaign also trains and empowers students to tackle food as an issue that determines our health, the sustainability of our lifestyles and the conditions of our communities and planet.