Affiliation of the Food and Agricultural Students Association in Dunedin was approved recently.
Association president Supriya Sally said the association had about 80 members, mostly students studying food science or agriculture.
All students were invited to join the group, Miss Sally said.
"If you eat food, you have opinions."
The association had been more popular with women than men.
When asked if meat-free days in dining halls at student halls on campus indicated a rise in students becoming vegans, Miss Sally said she believed the opposite was true.
"I’ve heard the trend is going backwards."
Secretary Tamsym Grainger said more high school pupils interested in a career in agriculture were being told to consider studying at the agricultural innovation programme at the University of Otago in Dunedin.
People had "woken up" to the value of the programme and how it differed from the programmes on offer at "conventional" agricultural tertiary institutes.
"You can take expertise from all sorts of areas and apply it to the future of agriculture— you can be a tech expert, a science nerd, you can do whatever you want."
Association vice-president Charlotte Lewis said the programme was "unique" and covered topics including genetics, microbiology and sustainability.
Sustainability in agriculture is taught in a positive way, exploring the use of innovation in the industry.
Part of the course is visiting farms and listening to farmers to identify issues and then working to find way to solve them with science.
An aim of the association was to provide a space for students to meet like-minded people, Miss Lewis said.
As a result of joining the association, she had gained the connections to join a Young Farmers clubs.
"As a scared little first-year, I never would have gone to a Young Farmers meeting."
The association would hold a big launch event next month.
Highlights of the event will include games, spot prizes and a panel discussion on the future of food and fibre.
Association second-year agriculture representative Georgie Burdon said companies answering a call to support the event included Barker’s of Geraldine, Havoc Farm Pork, and Hemp New Zealand, Farmstrong and FMG.
"We need the support so it’s been nice seeing companies getting behind us."
An aim of the group was to show support for the agriculture sector and to help bridge any perception of an urban-rural divide, Miss Burdon said.
"What we are building is something I feel very proud of."
