Bring a bag and win a prize: cougar food pantry sees rising demand

The Cougar Food Pantry, which recently expanded into a larger space in the Library Building (VLIB), is seeing a significant increase in student use, prompting new efforts to meet demand.

The pantry, now located in VLIB Room 240, allows currently enrolled students to walk in Monday through Friday to do their own grocery shopping. To pick up eggs, frozen foods, non-perishables, snacks, hygiene items, and cleaning products offered at the pantry, students just need to be currently enrolled in the semester and have a valid Cougar Card.

The pantry runs a drawing twice a semester for students who bring their own reusable bag. Those who participate are entered to win a small kitchen appliance. One student recently won a rice cooker and a food processor. The next drawing is scheduled for September-October 2025.

Esmeralda De Jesus Castaneda, a Cougar Food Pantry staff member, said the new location has made the pantry more visible and accessible.

“Before, we used to be in a smaller room, students would put in their order online, and it wasn’t visible,” Castaneda said. “Now they are on campus, they see the space and a lot of students come by word of mouth. It’s part of student tuition, and a lot of students try and take benefit from it.”

The process is straightforward: students check in with their Cougar Card, shop, and then weigh their items for food pantry record keeping. There is no weight limit for what students can take, but there is a minimum on items. 

According to Castaneda, the food pantry ran out of several popular items during the first week of the semester, including yogurt, shredded cheese, cream cheese, eggs and non-perishables like hot sauce, rice and noodles.

To keep up with demand, the pantry tries to stretch its budget by shopping at cost-efficient stores like Walmart and Fred Meyer and by setting limits on items such as baking goods, canned soups, and dried beans.

Currently, students are allowed two grab-and-go snack items twice a week, while grocery shopping and picking up hygiene or cleaning products are each limited to once a week. Castaneda hopes the food pantry can expand these limits in the future.

“I hope we are able to offer drinks along with the grab-and-go and allow for more than twice a week, but funding is an issue with that,” Castaneda said.

The Cougar Food Pantry hopes to partner with the Clark County Food Bank in the future to secure additional resources.

For more information, visit the Cougar Food Pantry website: Cougar Food Pantry – Student Affairs – WSU Vancouver