What’s C & U? And Why Should Almond Growers Care?

When growers think about foodservice demand, restaurants and packaged foods often come to mind. But another foodservice segment is quietly shaping ingredient use, consumer preferences and long‑term demand: College and University (C & U) foodservice.

C & U refers to on‑campus dining programs at colleges and universities. These programs feed students, faculty and staff every day across multiple venues and meals. Collectively, C & U foodservice represents an estimated $18 billion industry nationwide, with thousands of campuses and significant purchasing power. For almonds, it is a segment where scale and influence intersect.

A High‑Volume, High‑Impact Foodservice Channel

College campuses serve food continuously. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks are offered seven days a week. Some campuses prepare tens of thousands of meals daily across dining halls, cafés, food trucks and catering operations. Even small ingredient decisions, when multiplied across millions of meals each year, can add up quickly.

That scale is why the Almond Board of California engages with campus dining not only to encourage menu inclusion, but to help make almonds visible, desirable and repeatedly chosen by students. When almonds show up in everyday meals and beverages, they can influence preferences, normalize new uses beyond snacking and ultimately build long term demand.

Campus Dining Has Changed Dramatically

College dining today looks very different than it did a generation ago. Many universities now operate chef‑driven programs that emphasize scratch cooking, global flavors and ingredient transparency. On some campuses, dining experiences rival what is found in major cities.

Dining halls often feature multiple stations under one roof. These include plant‑forward menus, global cuisines, bakeries, smoothie bars and allergen‑aware options. Dining teams are expected to meet nutritional goals, sustainability commitments and dietary needs, while still delivering flavors students want.

For almonds, this shift creates meaningful opportunity. Almond butter, almond flour and other almond forms can show up across dayparts in smoothies, baked goods, sauces, snacks and globally inspired dishes. When students encounter almonds in craveable, on-trend formats, it broadens how they think about almonds and can influence what they buy and eat beyond campus.

Engaging with Campuses

The Almond Board works with campus dining leaders, executive chefs and purchasers, especially at universities that manage their own dining programs, to make it easier to feature almonds in ways students will choose. These teams shape what shows up on menus and, by extension, what students try, like and come back for.

Engagement includes on-campus activations that connect students with almond-based dishes already on the menu and make those choices easier to notice and select. The Board also collaborates with chefs to test recipes and menu applications that highlight almonds in relevant, student-appealing ways. Limited-time-offer toolkits support this work by providing recipes, signage and guidance that help dining teams feature almonds consistently and creatively.

Each effort is designed to remove barriers and help operators see almonds as functional, versatile ingredients that solve real menu challenges.

Learning What Works in Real Kitchens

Being on campus provides valuable insight as well. Seeing almonds used in high‑volume kitchens highlights what works well and what needs improvement. Small observations, such as how almond butter behaves during high-volume service, can reveal operational challenges and spark ideas for further research or technical guidance.

These learnings inform future product forms, usage recommendations and support materials. Over time, that benefits the entire supply chain, including handlers and growers.

Reaching Consumers at a Formative Moment

College students are making independent food choices, often for the first time. Repeated exposure to almonds in appealing dishes expands how they think about almonds beyond snacking.

Consistency matters. When a limited‑time dish performs well enough to become a regular menu item, it signals that almonds are delivering value for both operators and consumers. That repeat exposure helps reinforce almonds as familiar, versatile ingredients.

Measuring Success Across Campuses

Measuring impact in foodservice is complex. There is no single metric that captures success. Instead, the Almond Board looks at a combination of signals such as menu adoption, chef feedback, toolkit downloads and website engagement.

These measurements are directional rather than exact. Together, they help guide strategy as campus dining and student preferences continue to evolve. Importantly, most almond products featured through C­&­U programs are already available through existing foodservice distributors, helping turn menu exposure into real usage while supporting current handler and distributor relationships.

Why C & U Matters to Growers

C­&­U foodservice represents a long-term investment in almond demand because it combines large-scale meal volume with an unusually strong ability to shape consumer choices. Campus dining teams influence what students try repeatedly, and those experiences can carry forward into habits and purchases after graduation.

For growers, this work helps keep almonds top-of-mind as these student-consumers navigate more choices and more competing ingredients. By inspiring chefs and putting almonds in front of students in everyday, desirable formats, the Almond Board is helping drive preference and demand in one of the most influential food environments in the country.

In short, C­&­U is not just about feeding campuses. It is about influencing what the next generation enjoys, expects and chooses, and building durable almond demand as those preferences travel beyond the dining hall.