Sakarya University addresses student hunger through an integrated system that combines need-based meal support, transparent and affordable dining, immediate nutritional relief, housing stability, capacity upgrades, and waste-to-benefit practices, so that students have uninterrupted access to balanced meals and a reliable nutrition environment across campuses.
From 1–11 October 2024, the University opened its annual meal bursary call with no merit barrier for financially vulnerable students, and results were publicly released on 15 October 2024, creating a peer-verifiable allocation record at the point of highest financial pressure at the start of the academic year.
The Scholarships Hub provides up-to-date instructions, eligibility criteria, documentation examples, and application steps in one centralized place so first-time and international applicants can navigate support without barriers; proportionate documentation and plain-language guidance reduce administrative burden and improve on-time uptake.
Continuity and auditability are sustained by maintaining public calls and published results across cycles, establishing a verifiable trail that supports external review and deters bias in allocation; this transparency strengthens trust and equitable access to nutrition support.
In 2024, publicly posted student meal prices anchored affordability across dining halls, helping students plan budgets and protecting against price-driven exclusion; bursary recipients are not charged for lunch and dinner, and under the catering agreement a portion of the per-person meal cost is covered by the University so that all students can access meals at affordable prices.
Throughout the 2024 academic cycle, lunch and dinner service was available consistently across central and satellite locations, with menus designed by an expert dietitian to meet energy (kcal) needs and protect nutritional balance; standard, diet, vegetarian, and vegan options were provided, and if a meal was not suitable for vegetarians or vegans an alternative was included in the standard offer, with a salad bar available at every meal to sustain quality and choice.
Food safety and quality were safeguarded through regular inspections by Sakarya University and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry; samples were taken daily from meals for analysis and hygiene checks, ensuring that dining services remained reliable, safe, and central to Zero Hunger.
During Fall 2024, daily morning soup stations provided ready-to-eat, low-barrier nutrition for students commuting long distances, attending early labs, or facing breakfast insecurity, supporting concentration, attendance, and cognitive performance.
On 28 May 2024, evening hot soup services during the final examination period reduced hunger-related exhaustion and protected study stamina at a time of peak academic stress, preventing performance decline linked to nutritional gaps.
In Ramadan 2024, the University collaborated with the Sakarya Metropolitan Municipality to provide inclusive iftar meals on and near campus, ensuring reliable evening nutrition where household cooking capacity or support may be limited, while also reducing isolation and strengthening social support networks.
For the 2024–2025 academic year, cost-controlled university dormitories prevented displacement, overcrowding, and long commutes that undermine meal access; stable housing preserved proximity to affordable dining halls and campus services, lowering hunger vulnerability driven by indirect structural factors.
In 2024, the new cafeteria and canteen building at Sapanca Vocational School (MYO) expanded dining capacity and improved geographic reach across sub-campuses, reducing congestion and ensuring that bursaries and subsidies translated into real, timely access to meals.
Under the University's Zero Waste Program, food waste is measured before disposal in line with catering agreements, enabling upstream monitoring and continuous improvement in kitchens and service lines; edible, unserved meals are redirected the same day within food safety protocols through collaboration with the Sakarya Metropolitan Municipality to individuals identified as in need, while non-edible organics are separated and sent to authorized partners for recovery as biogas and liquid biofertilizer, with designated on-campus collection areas reinforcing circular practices that convert waste into community and environmental benefit.
In 2024, campus kitchen operations were aligned with surplus-aware planning and bursary-linked meal access, increasing the predictable availability of balanced, low-cost meals across central and satellite campuses and stabilizing daily nutrition for students at highest risk of skipping meals.
Ten percent of all food scholarships are specifically allocated to international students, extending Zero Hunger protections to non-national learners who face distinct vulnerabilities and ensuring that inclusivity is built into the core of need-based support.
Calls, results, and instructions are communicated through web pages, announcements, and campus-facing notices in clear, accessible language, while handoffs between the bursary process, dining affordability, and dormitory access are harmonized to prevent duplication and confusion, creating a coherent user journey that stabilizes daily nutrition at the moments students need it most.
Beyond meals, the University operates Dükkan Senin, a social responsibility project launched in 2019 and still ongoing, which provides new or gently used clothing and essential items free of charge to students in need, reducing financial pressure on household budgets and indirectly protecting food access by easing competing basic-needs costs.
Sakarya University provides daily meals and food assistance programs to support staff in need through its dining services and social responsibility initiatives.
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