How can youth be educated and empowered to become responsible food citizens? Evidence from a university-community partnership with youth in Michigan is presented to illuminate participatory approaches to youth engagement in food systems. We found that youth have valuable knowledge to enhance our understanding of food environments. At the same time, obstacles such as an ethos of individualism may stand in the way of youth seeing themselves as food citizens capable of improving their food environment. Cultivating youth food citizens must take into consideration youths' particular knowledge, while also helping them uncover their social responsibilities.