Welcome to The Open Seat Food Pantry

Welcome to The Open Seat Food Pantry

The Open Seat

Our Mission

The Open Seat Food Pantry strives to provide healthy and nutritious food and hygiene products for students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. We aim to ensure all students can focus on their success rather than the source of their next meal. 

Visit The Open Seat

Fall 2024 Hours:

Monday: 1-5PM
Tuesday: 5-8PM
Friday: 1-6PM

**Starting on November 11th, shopping at The Open Seat Food Pantry at East Campus Mall will be by appointment only. Use the link below to schedule a 15 minute appointment up to a week in advance: Make a shopping appointment!

Location:

Student Activity Center, 333 East Campus Mall, Madison WI 53715

The food pantry is on the third floor of East Campus Mall in the Student Activity Center. On the third floor, the food pantry is to the right of the main desk. You can access our space by elevator or stairs.

Know Before You Go:

Any UW-Madison student is eligible to use the pantry.

If you have any questions, visit our FAQs below. If you cannot find the answer to your question, please send us an email at openseat@asm.wisc.edu.

Fall 2024 Hours:

Wednesday: 5-6PM

Location:

Eagle Heights Community Center, 611 Eagle Heights Dr, Madison WI 53705

Distribution occurs inside the Eagle Heights Community Center. Please enter through the main entrance and take a left past the offices. The line for distribution forms into the gymnasium.

Know Before You Go:

Any UW-Madison student is eligible to sign up for the Eagle Heights Distribution. Please complete the form below by Friday at noon to place an order for pick-up. If you do not fill out the form, you are able to pick up one order of each item.

Eagle Heights Order Form

If you have any questions, visit our FAQs below. If you cannot find the answer to your question, please send us an email at openseat@asm.wisc.edu.

Contact The Open Seat

Email: openseat@asm.wisc.edu

Follow our Instagram for updates!

Instagram: openseat_uw

How To Help

Thank you for your interest in supporting The Open Seat! There are many ways you can get involved from volunteering to dropping donations off at the pantry.

Time

Interested in supporting The Open Seat by volunteering your time? Any UW-Madison student can help! No experience is required. Use the link below to sign-up for a volunteer shift that works for you.

Money

Donate to the Campus Food Access Fund to support The Open Seat in purchasing food and hygiene products. Thanks to our partnership with Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin, every dollar you give is worth double in groceries.

Goods

You can donate shelf-stable foods (rice, pasta, canned goods), produce, hygiene products, and/or paper/plastic bags to help stock our shelves.

If you're interested in hosting a donation drive please email openseat.outreach@asm.wisc.edu.

FAQs

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Who can shop at The Open Seat?

Any University of Wisconsin-Madison undergraduate, graduate, or professional degree student can shop at The Open Seat. 

We understand food insecurity can look different for different people. Please stop in if you think The Open Seat and its services may be helpful for you and your household or make it easier to be a student! 

How does The Open Seat work?

At our East Campus Mall location, simply stop in during open hours and pick up the items you would like. When you arrive you will be asked to fill out a secure, online form that will ask about the size of your household. Please bring bags to carry your groceries.

At our Eagle Heights pop-up distribution, please fill out the form linked below to place an order for pick-up. The order form should be submitted by Friday at noon before the Wednesday you intend to pick up. The online form will ask for the quantity of dry goods, eggs, milk, bread, and produce you would like. It will also ask for demographic information. This information is kept secure. You will pick up your order in a distribution line after checking in with The Open Seat Staff. Please bring bags to carry your groceries. Distribution occurs weekly.

Eagle Heights Order Form

What should I bring when I visit The Open Seat?

For East Campus Mall pick-up, all you need is yourself and a device to fill out the entry form. We have grocery bags and boxes for transporting food, but we appreciate it when folks bring their own bags or use a reusable tote! 

For Eagle Heights pick-up, bring yourself, know the name of the person who placed the order, and grocery or reusable bags.

Why do I have to fill out a form to pick up food?

We are required to report the number of people served to our food source (Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin). This information also helps us monitor pantry activities and make sure we are ordering appropriate amounts of food. Please note all survey information remains confidential and is never used to identify individual shoppers.

Is there a limit on visits or the amount of food I can take?

There is no limit on visits to The Open Seat. 

At our East Campus Mall location, there are suggested portions for food items and item numbers based on household size. This is so we are able to support as many students as possible on campus. We encourage you to take what you need while being considerate of others and food waste. 

At Eagle Heights distribution, the amount of food you receive depends on your order. We always try to give you what you ordered but some times we do not receive our entire order or supply is low so we may have to provide less than expected.

Why are there food items that are past their expiration dates?

At our pantry you may find items past their best-by dates. This does not mean that the food is bad!

According to the USDA guidelines that The Open Seat follows, “Best by,” “Use by,” and “Sell by” dates are not expiration dates: 

  • “Best by” = When a product has the best flavor or quality 
  • “Sell by” = How long a store will display a product for inventory 
  • “Use by” = Last date that a product should be used while at peak quality 

With the exception of infant formula, food items without evidence of spoiling (weird smell, color, feeling) should be safe to eat. 

We will never intentionally offer spoiled or unsafe food items. Following the USDA’s expiration date policies allows us and local partners to reduce food waste and offer a wider variety of foods. However, if you see or receive an inedible food item, please alert us and discard.

Did you know these common food items, if unopened, can last this long past their expiration date? 

  • Eggs: 5 weeks
  • Milk: 1 week 
  • Prepared Foods (hummus, guacamole, refrigerated soups): 1 week
  • Bread: 3 weeks 
  • Boxed Goods: 2 years 
  • Canned Goods: 2 years 

Learn More About Food Product Dating

Where does the food come from?

We purchase food with private financial donations from Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin at a discounted rate. We also have several partners that help us to accomplish our mission! Without these partners, The Open Seat would not be possible! We receive donations from the following businesses and organizations:

Target on State Street

GoPuff on Regent Street

Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens – Forward Garden

Other Basic Needs Resources

The Basic Needs website can connect you to other UW-Madison and community basic needs resources.

UW-Madison Food Resources

Food Resource Map

Support Food Access for Students

Are you interested in supporting on and off campus efforts in food access? You can make a difference by donating time, money, or resources!

Donate

About The Open Seat

Undergraduate and graduate students nationwide experience levels of food insecurity higher than the general population. Inspired by other college campuses and growing need, a group of UW-Madison undergraduate students partnered with the Associated Students of Madison to start The Open Seat Food Pantry. The Open Seat is proudly UW-Madison’s first student-run, student-serving pantry. Since its founding, The Open Seat has been housed in the heart of campus at the Student Activity Center, 333 East Campus Mall. In 2021, The Open Seat grew and started offering a weekly food distribution at the Eagle Heights Community Center. 

Since 2016, The Open Seat’s goal has remained the same: to provide consistent and compassionate access to a variety of foods, hygiene products, and educational opportunities on campus year-round.