Monash University has become the first university in Victoria to introduce healthy vending machines aligned to the Victorian Government’s Healthy Choices guidelines. This means that students and staff now have access to healthy snacks and drinks on the go.
The Healthy Choices guidelines rate foods and drinks according to the traffic light system. ‘Green’ products are the healthiest choice, ‘amber’ products indicate a need to choose carefully, and ‘red’ products offer a reminder to limit consumption of these less healthy products.
Over half the foods and drinks in the 35 new vending machines located across Monash University campuses are from the healthiest ‘green’ category.
The healthy vending machines are part of Monash University’s efforts to be recognised as a Healthy Workplace with the Achievement Program. To date, the University has been recognised as achieving best practice standards for alcohol, mental health, smoking and physical activity. And healthy eating is now in their sights.
“This is just the first step towards improving the availability of healthy food choices for staff and students,” the University’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Vicki Ashton, said. “We are now looking at how we can work with our food retailers and caterers to ensure our people always have access to healthy food on campus.”
For more information on Monash University’s efforts visit the website.
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