College students are in a constant state of transition. While living away from home, students juggle their diets among their other scheduled daily activities. For some, eating healthy, or eating three meals a day for that matter, is almost impossible with a day filled with classes and meetings. Shopping healthy is nearly impossible when money is a scarcity for most college students. However, stores such as Good Measure and Harps are aiming to help students eat right for less.
Nancy Oliver is the co-owner of Good Measure, a bulk health food store that opened in town last year. Good Measure is located at 614 S. Main St.
“Our main drive is the fact that we saw a hole in purchasing healthy food,” Oliver said. “People drive to Little Rock to go to Whole Foods to buy and that is great, but it gets expensive.”
Oliver’s passion for healthy food runs deep. She said she strives above all else to help customers see the value in healthy food.
“I don’t like the term ‘health food’,” Oliver said. “Food ought to be healthy. We ought to be saying instead of food and health food, food and garbage food. God made and intended for food to be healthy.”
Many students on campus suffer from gluten allergies or simply choose to live a gluten free lifestyle. Caf options are limited, and gluten free snacks can be hard to find. Good Measure advertises its gluten free choices right on the doors.
“About 10 percent of our store would qualify as gluten free,” Oliver said. “I have been eating gluten free for eight years now. My goal is to bring food that is ‘good’, not just ‘good for gluten free.'”
Eating well, exercising and practicing portion control are choices people make every day. While shopping and eating healthy is important, is there any room for sugary snacks or comfort food?
“We want people to be able to eat healthy and cook and bake in new kinds of ways,” Oliver said. “We want all that, but we also believe that you should be able to eat your birthday cake. We put bulk snacks together that are good convenience foods, some are gluten free as well.”
For those who are looking to eat healthy, but just do not know where to start, Good Measure is the perfect place to begin.
“What we have to offer the Harding student body is knowledge, I would say,” Oliver said. “Instead of me offering a specific product, I will walk through with them about their preference. Mom isn’t fixing us what we like; so this is a great time to help students adjust their pallets.”
Another grocery store that is perfect for purchasing healthy food is Harps Food. Located at 2525 W. Beebe-Capps Expressway, Harps provides an excellent produce section with affordable prices.
Harps store manager Chris Burns said that patrons can expect fresh products and excellent customer service at the store.
“We have a wide variety of organic selections as well as a wide range of different kinds of produce,” Burns said. “We have quite a few varieties of apples for instance, and specialty produce that we get in from time to time also.”
Burns said that prices are comparable to Walmart, where many students do their grocery shopping.
Harps also offers many organic options.
“We have a wide variety of organics in our produce, dairy, and even frozen food section,” Burns said. “We also have a wide variety of gluten-free products available.”
Shopping for inexpensive healthy food is tough, but definitely not impossible. There are choices for those tight on cash, gluten-free dieters and those who simply want a healthy snack. Eating healthy should be a reward to both your body and your wallet.
