On Wednesday mornings, Dalhousie University students and faculty, alongside community members, line up outside the Student Union Building (SUB) and swarm tables stacked with fresh produce, baked goods and bouquets of flowers.
The Beet Street Market has quickly become one of the busiest weekly events on campus since it launched last year. Student volunteers run the market, with coordination from the Dalhousie Student Union’s sustainability office and the Loaded Ladle.
The market sold out almost every week last school year, according to coordinator Elisabeth Pickart, a fourth-year sustainability student and DSU food commissioner.
“It can be stressful, but it’s exciting,” Pickart says. “It’s wonderful to see so many people, and I feel like we’ve started creating a bit of a community.”
The market launched in October 2024, when Pickart, along with another student organizer who also works with the Loaded Ladle, saw an opportunity to try something new.
What started in a corner of the SUB has grown to occupy the building’s front entrance, drawing regulars who treat it as part of their weekly routine.
Emma Andrews, a third-year political science student, says Beet Street is her first stop for groceries every week.
“I got a bag full of produce for $10,” Andrews says. “It’s the number one place to access food.”
SUB: Food security at stake
For students, the impact goes beyond convenience. The market addresses a growing concern on campus — food security.
“You look at the prices in the superstore, and then come here; the comparison is unbelievable,” says Rachel Lutes, a third-year environmental science and sustainability student who helps run the market.
“It’s finally getting the recognition it deserves.”
Canadian-owned vendors deliver produce the day before or the morning of the market. Pickart says shoppers are often shocked by the affordability.
For Grace George, a third-year costume design student, the market bridges a food quality gap.
“We have access [to food], but it’s not as good. The grocery store produce is just gross,” she says.
Both Andrews and George say the market makes it easier to learn how to shop for themselves while living away from home.
“Basically everything here is what you should have in your kitchen,” George says. “It’s a good starter for people.”
