Cornell Food Hackathon
About the Event
The Cornell Food Hackathon is an annual innovation challenge that brings together over 150 undergraduate and graduate students from across all Cornell colleges and schools. Working in multidisciplinary teams, students explore real-world food system challenges set by industry partners.
Over the course of an intensive, high-energy weekend, students collaborate to develop and pitch creative solutions in areas such as food innovation, health and wellness, and sustainability. The event culminates in a live pitch competition with $10,000 in prizes, mentorship from industry and faculty experts, and opportunities to further prototype winning ideas.
Why It Matters
With the global population projected to exceed 9 billion by mid-century, and nearly a billion people still facing hunger and malnutrition, the transformation of food systems is a global imperative. Addressing this complex challenge requires:
- New approaches to food production, processing, and distribution
- Cross-disciplinary collaboration among scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, and policy thinkers
- Innovative, student-driven solutions that can spark real-world impact
This hackathon empowers the next generation of leaders to tackle these challenges head-on.
