Local (and Healthy) Food Should Be For Everyone
Published February 02, 2009 @ 07:43AM PT
Local food is a lot of things. For one, it is an inherently healthy dietary lifestyle to adopt.
Those who choose to eat local foods produced seasonally are much more likely to consume a greater amount of fresh fruits and vegetables, and tend to eat less processed foods that are often high in calories and saturated fats.
Local food is an economic engine that allows farmers and other producers with access to markets that were not there even ten years ago, and allows consumers to choose to spend their money locally instead of at big box chain stores where revenue is sent to shareholders living outside the community. Thus, buying local food is also a way to invest in the local community.
This is often described as a community multiplier effect. Perhaps most important to many, buying local food is a way to reconnect to our food system. By having a direct relationship with farmers, we are able to put a face on our food and are even able to control (to some degree) how the food we eat is produced. Unfortunately, there is one thing that local food certainly is not: inclusive.
The logistics of the current industrial food system tend to produce inequalities when it comes to who has access to local, and even more importantly, healthy foods. There are three distinguishing characteristics of populations who have unequal access to healthy foods: 1) They live in urban areas; 2) They live in poverty, or are classified as low-income; and 3) They are overwhelmingly African-American.
There have been many studies, including this one (pdf), conducted that analyze the relationship between neighborhood demographics and access to different types of food stores.
This study in particular found, among other conclusions, that:
Compared to the poorest neighborhoods, large numbers of supermarkets and gas stations with convenience stores are located in wealthier neighborhoods.
Regarding neighborhood racial segregation, supermarkets and specialty food stores are more common in racially mixed and predominately white neighborhoods. The greatest difference is in the prevalence of supermarkets, which are 4 times more common in predominately white neighborhoods compared to predominately black neighborhoods.
So what does this tell us about access to local food? Considering the fact that poor, black neighborhoods are four times less likely to have access to supermarkets than wealthier white neighborhoods, we can assume that their access to local food (either through farmers’ markets, CSAs, or other means) is even more restricted.
Places such as the poor, minority neighborhoods described in the report above are known as “food deserts,” or places that have no or distant access to grocery stores. This report analyzes the effect of food deserts on public health in Chicago. (pdf) Not only does it study the distance it takes residents to reach grocery stores, but also takes into account the proximity of fast food restaurants and how this relationship affects public health. They describe this as a Food Balance effect. All of the findings in this report point to one conclusion:
Communities that have no or distant grocery stores, or have an imbalance of healthy food options, will likely have increased premature death and chronic health conditions, holding other influences constant. Although we must set our findings in the context of the challenges and limitations of linking cause and effect and of predicting, with certainty, the exact statistical magnitude of the relationship between food access and health, it is clear that food deserts, especially those with an abundance of fast food options, pose serious health and wellness challenges to the residents who live within them and to the City of Chicago as a whole.
In terms of race:
African-Americans are the most disadvantaged when it comes to balanced food choices, although other racial groups do suffer as well. African-Americans, on average, travel the farthest distance to any type of grocery store, and their low access communities cluster strikingly. Chicago’s food deserts, for the most part, are exclusively African-American.
In a typical African-American block, the nearest grocery store is roughly twice as distant as the nearest fast food restaurant. This means that, for African-Americans, it is much easier to access fast food than other types of food. Following a doctor’s dietary recommendation is likely very difficult for the half million plus African-Americans who live in the 287 worst grocery-store-access tracts.
There is a lot of talk in the sustainable food community about the dietary choices we all make. However, it is important to realize, as the food desert report notes, “while many of us take food options for granted, residents of the food desert often cannot choose between eating an apple instead of a candy bar, a salad instead of french fries, or fresh skinless chicken instead of deep fried, high-fat chicken.”
It is when people are devoid of healthy food choices that the inequalities of our current food system become most apparent.
Thankfully, there are both national and local organizations around the country working to increase access to healthy and local foods for vulnerable populations. For example, Occidental College operates a Center for Food and Justice designed to connect underserved populations with healthy and local food through programs such as the Grocery Accountability Project that encourages, through program and policy development, retail food industries to open supermarkets in low-income neighborhoods. In the Washington, DC area, FRESHFARM Markets participates in the WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Program, Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program and an EBT/Food Stamps program. All of these are designed to give low-income residents access to farm fresh food that they would otherwise not be able to afford. There are many other programs like these throughout the country too.
Sustainable food must equal just food. When making your next trip to the supermarket, corner store or farmers’ market, please remember to think of (and support) those whose food choices have already been made by their location, race and income level.
(Photo credit: altemark on Flickr.)
Share this Post
Facebook
Twitter
Digg
StumbleUpon
Delicious
EmailRelated Posts
Comments (36)
Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the ideas covered in the posts. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; that contain ad hominem attacks; or that are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion.
Author
-
Greg Plotkin is a local food enthusiast, former farm laborer from Connecticut, and current grant writer at American Farmland Trust in Washington, DC. The views and ideas he shares here are his alone, and do not represent those of American Farmland Trust. Follow Greg on Twitter: http://twitter.com/gplot.
Featured Sustainable Food Actions
-
-
-
Campbell’s Soup: Stop Poisoning Our Food!
3032 People
-
Campbell’s Soup: Stop Poisoning Our Food!
Great post - I hope my readers see this!
Also, on On Point this morning on NPR, the second hour was all about eating locally, and the guest didn't really know how to respond to the problem of "food deserts".
Posted by Leigh Graham on 02/02/2009 @ 10:08AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Thanks for this post, Greg.
In partnership with a number of other advocacy and human services organizations, Bread for the City (where I work) helped create the DC Food Finder last year to help residents and service providers find their way through the desert to sources of affordable and healthy food. It's a pretty nifty Google Maps mashup that assembles a diverse array of sources to create a street-level view of what's out there, including the WIC sites and farmer's markets that you mention.
We also cover the matter of food access often on our blog. I hope you'll check it out and be in touch!
Posted by Greg Bloom on 02/02/2009 @ 03:03PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
That's a great resource, but we have to remember that checking out blogs and using google maps is not necessarily on the radar of all the residents in a food desert. In fact, internet access isn't necessarily a given.
Is there a print version that could be distributed for free?
Posted by che broadnax on 02/06/2009 @ 01:06PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Good point. I think, as a resource, the Food Finder's best use is for service providers and other folks who are working with people who need help to establish a regular diet. You're right that it's greatly limited by the digital divide. (And I'm not sure if there's a printed set of the data - I don't think there is...) But it's also helpful for advocates and community leaders who need to determine where resources are most needed in the effort to improve neighborhood access.
Posted by Greg Bloom on 02/06/2009 @ 03:21PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
I take exception to the notion that "there aren't enough grocery stores" in certain places. C'MON! Food doesn't come from stores! ANYONE, and I mean ANYONE, can grow at least some of their own food.
Yes, tomatoes, as well as other plants, can be grown in window boxes. Read "Square Foot Gardening" and see how little land is needed to grow a garden. Even if there is no window box, one could make an elevated bow as he tells in the book, and use it inside under a grow-light.
The trouble is, most people are too lazy (repeat, lazy) to grow a garden. I grow practically all the plant food we eat in our family of 6, and believe me it is hard work--YOU HAVE TO BE OUT THERE TENDING IT EVERY DAY...but WORTHWHILE.
Until people get rid of the "store" mentality, and start taking responsibility for producing their own, (at least partially) there will continue to be a local-food problem.
As grassfed lamb producers, we really grudge having to take lambs to the auction barn; we'd rather sell them locally to people in the area. But every year, we do end up taking some to the sale barn, because not enough people will but them. They'd rather go to the store, and buy some factory-farm-produced meat, butchered in contaminated slaughterhouses.
Posted by emily matthews on 02/10/2009 @ 07:07AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Emily, I absolutely 100 percent agree with you that all people can (and should) grow some of their own food. And yes, all people should realize that food comes from the field, not the store.
What I am not saying in this article is, "YES! Grocery stores are the greatest invention in the history of American consumerism. More stores on every corner!" What I am saying is that for poor, urban, low-income individuals access to grocery stores (coupled with nutritional education) is the first step in changing a culture of unhealthy eating.
And also, while I agree laziness is responsible for some lack of personal food production, there is also the issue of time. Many low-income urbanites work at least two jobs, have children to take care of, get to school, feed, etc. It is not always possible to find the time to begin and manage your own garden.
We are of like mind though. People should certainly should be responsible for their own food production when they can and try and buy as locally and sustainably when they must.
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/10/2009 @ 01:42PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
My deep apologies for posting this as mine and not switching the author name earlier. This is an article Greg Plotkin was kind enough to send in and I only caught now that I missed changing that field in the submission form.
I feel like a twit, and I hope Greg will still consider contributing in future.
Posted by Natasha Chart on 02/02/2009 @ 02:47PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Thanks for the great article, Greg. This is a really important issue that is not spoken of as often as it should be in the sustainable food movement. You are absolutely right--our current food system is incredibly unequal, socioeconomically and by extension, racially. The costs and unequal distribution of sustainable food in our country is a serious barrier to this movement gaining the kind of momentum it should be. This is, of course, not the movement's fault. It is our current system. And I'm glad to see that there are organizations taking action about this problem.
Posted by D W on 02/03/2009 @ 12:32AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Nice work, Greg. Very informitive. You have developed a very intersting paradox here, that many people have not yet explored. In the efforts to equalize food distribution and to further the effort of sustainable food in all our comunities it's very important that people like you shed light on these ideas and concepts. And that these these concepts can be shared in a easily read and understood manner will further the understanding of this situation and hopefully draw more people into the process.
Posted by Jason Plotkin on 02/03/2009 @ 11:36AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Greg: Awesome article! Reminds me of how much I often take for granted.
Posted by Andrea Freier on 02/03/2009 @ 07:25PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} FOOD MILES DON'T FEED CLIMATE CHANGE - MEAT DOES That locally-produced, free-range, organic hamburger might not be as green as you think. An analysis of the environmental toll of food production concludes that transportation is a mere drop in the carbon bucket. Foods such as beef and dairy make a far deeper impression on a consumer's carbon footprint. "If you have a certain type of diet that’s indicative of the American average, you're not going to do that much for climate while eating locally... http://environment.newscientist.com/channel/earth/dn13741-food-miles-dont-feed-climate-change--meat-does.html
Posted by JC Corcoran on 02/06/2009 @ 06:56AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Headlines can be deceiving. Check out the actual studies. Although they don't clearly state all of their factors, it appears that they based the calculations on standard industrial methods of raising meat.
Meat from a factory confinement farm, where the animals are fed grain, is NOT environmentally friendly, or animal friendly, or human health friendly regardless of whether or not it is "local."
Meat from a sustainable, pasture-based farm that is close to where it is bought is an entirely different system.
The studies cited in the article look at just the one factor -- local versus not-local -- and then the headline claims to make findings that are much broader.
From one of the underlying studies the article links to: “The calculations, which are based on standard industrial methods of meat production in Japan … Over two-thirds of the energy goes towards producing and transporting the animals' feed. … A Swedish study in 2003 suggested that organic beef, raised on grass rather than concentrated feed, emits 40 per cent less greenhouse gases and consumes 85 per cent less energy” --http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19526134.500-meat-is-murder-on-the-environment.html
And from the specfic study in the article: “the more extensive supply chains of meat production (i.e., moving feed to animals)” ... if they're moving fed to animals, it's not a sustainable grass-based operation. (http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es702969f?cookieSet=1)
And none of the studies appear to have looked at the carbon sequestration from well-managed grasslands.
Posted by Judith McGeary on 02/06/2009 @ 09:07AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
JC, you need to go to the westonaprice.org website, and read about the environmental wasteland that would occur if aimals were not kept. Think about it: they can graze where crops CANNOT be grown, and their manure enriches the land.
In fact, "if you wanna be a vegan, you have to kill, kill, kill". Yes, especially if you buy plant-only food from a store, you are responsible for the deaths of millions of animals. Consider combines: they kill countless birds and animals, even deer. That is how grains are harvested--unless you grew your own, cut it by hand, shocked, and then threshed it all by hand.
Now consider how grains are grown: fossil fuels are used for fertilizers, as well as to run all the tractors and combines to plow, plant, fertilise, and harvest. Then more fuel used to process the grain (unless you grind your own with a hand-grinder). Especially consider the high amount of energy needed to get something like corn oil. It is made in a refinery the same way crude is refined. Again, more energy inputs.
Contrast that with raising healthy animals on grass. (We do). We don't even OWN a tractor, much less run one. Yes, we do have to buy hay, which was harvested with fossil fuel, but that is all. When we butcher, we get good old lard and suet; no refineries needed. And our animals' manure goes to enrich our organic garden.
Has anyone stopped to consider that it'd be pretty hard to raise anything organic without manure? Yes, animals usually enrich the soil, whereas plants are soil robbers. If it weren't for our animal friends, the outlook would be bleak indeed. And grass is supposed to be a great carbon-eater, (not that I believe in global warming anyway). But if you do, that also needs to be considered.
Posted by emily matthews on 02/10/2009 @ 01:36PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
This is a great article and pointed to something I wasn't very focused on. I've been doing research for the last 4 months on food supply and what companies control it. Have you any comments or will you be doing any research on the developments of GE foods and the patenting movement that has been skipping steps in our system? USDA has loopholes that Biotech companies go right through pushing seed systems and foods systems that have had no "real " regulation. This is another talk we should be having as a community. The more people I speak with the more I realize that no one has a clue. If you like to have a private conversation, I can update you on all my findings. (this is open to anyone)
Felipe from Chicago
Posted by Felipe Tendick-Mat... on 02/06/2009 @ 11:54AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Hi, Felipe. Thanks so much for your comment.
The discussion about GM crops is an important one, and not just to those of us who care about sustainable food but to everyone who is apart of the food distribution system in this country.
Natasha has written on gene modification before: http://food.change.org/blog/view/gene_modified_crops_gain_traction, and since this is such an important topic, I'm sure there will be more posts in the future.
Would love to hear about your research. I'll follow up with you soon!
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/06/2009 @ 03:31PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
As Greg notes, this issue does concern me. So by all means, send more info my way. I'm also currently reading the book "Seeds of Deception" by Jeffrey Smith, which reviews the research (or lack thereof) into the safety of GMOs. Unnerving stuff.
It sounded like a nifty toy, useful even, when I first read about it. Though the more I learned ... eeek!
Posted by Natasha Chart on 02/06/2009 @ 07:43PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
It's good to see food access getting some more press, as food justice is a critical issue. When we talk about institutionalized and systemic oppression, we aren't talking about a couple of hate-spewing folks, we're talking about infrastructure. We're talking about food, clothing, shelter, water. Fundamentals.
I would, however, like to say that I'm tired of people giving chicken WITH the skin a bad rap. Fat is not necessarily bad for you. I grew up eating fried chicken for as many two meals a week -- home-cooked fried chicken -- and my cholesterol level has always been low, which is rare for my family history. The reason? Aside from personal metabolic peculiarities, I believe it has a lot to do with the delicious fresh veggies that my mother always provided, especially from our own community garden plot. I'm no scientist, but balancing your diet may allow you to eat a delicious crispy wing, instead of a stupid boring skinless, boneless breast. My two cents.
Posted by che broadnax on 02/06/2009 @ 01:02PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Thanks for the comment, Che. Nothing against chicken with the skin on it here, =).
And your point is a good one. More than what we eat, it is how we eat that determines how balanced our diets are. Mixing in lots of fresh fruits, veggies, nuts and grains to whatever else we choose to consume is essential to good health. (And not to mention delicious!)
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/06/2009 @ 03:19PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Felipe from Chicago said
"... I've been doing research for the last 4 months on food supply and what companies control it....."
The locavores and farmers who are anti-NAIS have done a great deal of study on this subject over the past few years. It is ALL connected and all part of the Mega Corps grap for the control of the world food supply.
Here are a bunch of interesting sites.
Please take the time to help out the small farmers in the USA by commenting on the World trade Organization's agenda called NAIS.
Despite Obama's request the second phase of the WTO AoA is poised to go into effect March 2009. We have the opportunity to stop these changes by commenting on the proposed rule change. Your comments can be made at http://www.regulations.govfdmspubliccomponentmain?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2007-0096
Now to some of those sites that explain why this is such BAD NEWS
The goal within the WTO, dating from 2000, is to extend patent laws over all plants and animals (Article 27.3b)..” http://www.africafocus.org/docs07/bio0712.php
Patenting of life:
Seed Sharing or Biopiracy . http://www.africafocus.org/docs07/bio0712.php
Global Diversity Treaty. http://www.bioversityinternational.org/publications/pdf/1144.pdf
“In the EU, there is now a list of 'official' vegetable varieties. Seed that is not on the list cannot be 'sold' to the 'public' .” http://www.realseeds.co.uk/terms.html"
www.euroseeds.org/pdf/ESA_03.0050.1.pdf
98 per cent of our vegetable varieties have disappeared. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/news/agricultural-red-tape-driving-vegetable-varieties-to-extinction-763821.html
Monsanto Pig Patent http://www.saynotogmos.org/ud2005/uaug05b.html Monsanto's Seeds of Worry: http://www.mcgilldaily.com/article/2998-seeds-of-worry
ICAR Animal Patenting Service http://www.icar.org/%5Cpages%5Cpsas.htm
Cloned Animals: http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/dec2007/2007-12-20-091.asp
“StarLink maize was found for the first time in food aid distributed directly by the WFP. StarLink is banned for human consumption due to possible allergic reactions to the genetically altered protein it contains... GMOs were found in more than 80 percent of all samples sent to the laboratory”...http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2005/2005-02-16-09.asp
Structural Adjustment Policies used to force third world farmers off land:
SAP The globalization of poverty http://www.doublestandards.org/sap1.html
Structural Adjustment Policies http://www.whirledbank.org/development/sap.html
Mr. Budhoo's Bombshell: Former employee Breaks Code of Silence on IMF of crimes: http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/IMF_WB/Budhoo_IMF.html
World Trade Organization's plans to control farming and food production
Aims to ensure that governments do not use quarantine and food safety requirements as Unjustified trade barriers: http://www.oie.int/eng/publicat/rt/2002/WILSON.PDF
Report Finds Fundamental Flaws in WTO's Agreement on Agriculture http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/891.html
Guide to Good Farming Practices . http://www.oie.int/eng/publicat/rt/2502/review25-2BR/25-berlingueri823-836.pdf
Safe and Secure Food Act of 2005 http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=s109-1534
Polish entry into the European Union: The EU plans to remove 1 million farmers from their land http://www.i-sis.org.uk/savePolishCountryside.php
The problems with ISO according to the USA Quality Society ISO and Similar Certification Schemes: http://www.systemsthinking.co.uk/3-1-article.asp http://www.qualitymag.com/Articles/Letters_From_the_Editor/e4100ee7f4c38010VgnVCM100000f932a8c0____
Probing the Limits: ISO 9001 Proves Ineffective http://www.qualitymag.com/Articles/Column/17062620c7c38010VgnVCM100000f932a8c0____ http://www.qualitymag.com/Articles/Letters_From_the_Editor/65730ee7f4c38010VgnVCM100000f932a8c0__
USDA & WTO allows disease into USA
Texas AG plan www.tahc.state.tx.us/news/pr/2002/302TBMx.pdf
Santa Teresa, NM, Chihuahuan cattle producers operate both sides of the cattle port-of-entry. www.ers.usda.gov/publications/Agoutlook/june2001/AO282d.pdf
Bovine Tuberculosis: Infected Dairy Herd Identified in California 2002: The discovery of this infected herd is a result of enhanced surveillance. (chart shows 90% DECREASE in testing) http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/vetext/INF-BE_cca/INF-BE_cca02/INF-BE_cca0207-08.html
USDA is moving toward supporting fewer labs nationwide, with the remaining labs serving as regional labs and supporting larger geographic areas..” http://www.tahc.state.tx.us/agency/TAHC_Strategic_Plan_2009-2013.pdf
WTO directive to NOT allow inspections http://www.oie.int/eng/publicat/rt/2002/WILSON.PDF
The USDA has decrease the inspection of imported food from 8.0% to 0.6% WHILE IMPORTS HAVE DOUBLED SINCE THE MID NINETIES.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55892
“It is urgent that scientists come forward with alternative methods of disease control that will not only avoid wastage of valuable animal proteins but that will also promote the international trade of animals and animal products by removing technically unjustified trade barriers caused by animal diseases”, http://www.oie.int/eng/press/en_040422.htm
Furthermore, it can help to eliminate unjustified trade barriers, since a sound traceability system provides trading partners with assurances on the safety of the products they import. Traceability techniques can provide additional guarantees as to the origin, type or organoleptic quality of food products. http://www.oie.int/eng/edito/en_edito_apr08.htm
Transfer of liability http://nonais.org/2008/07/08/transferring-liability/ The Animal Health Protection Act of May 22 2008 has fines and penalties of $500-$1,000,000 and up to 10 years in prison agriculture.senate.gov/Legislation/Compilations/AgMisc/AHPA.pdf
College Slide Show on Cargill http://www.morris.umn.edu/academic/anthropology/chollett/anth%203204/Class%20Presentations.08/Harvest%20of%20Profits-%20The%20World%20Empire%20of%20Cargill,%20Inc.ppt At a time when parts of the world are facing food riots, Big Agriculture is reaping huge profits. http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/breakingnews/83971.php
Agriculture and Monopoly capital: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1132/is_n3_v50?pnum=10&opg=21031832&tag=artBody;col1 Manufacturing Food Crisis: http://agrariancrisis.wordpress.com/2008/09/12/manufacturing-food-crisis/
JBS Swift’s buyout: http://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/jbs-beef-buy-is-bad-for-everyone/
Food Supremacy: http://www.fpif.org/outside/commentary/2002/0202food.html
How to manufacture a global food crisis: http://www.japanfocus.org/_Walden_Bello-How_to_Manufacture_a_Global_Food_Crisis__The_destruction_of_agriculture_in_developing_countries/ Empire of Burgers: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/1997/jun/20/johnvidal
Short pew report: http://www.pewtrusts.org/news_room_detail.aspx?id=38438
Full (125 pg) Pew report: http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Industrial_Agriculture/PCIFAP_FINAL.pdf
An old list of companies that control food, the list is decent but the site is questionable and so are the comments. However the list gives you the names you can start with.
http://www.larouchepub.com/other/1995/2249_cartel_companies.html
I have several more pages of references so just ask.
Posted by gail combs on 02/06/2009 @ 05:16PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
What hasn't been discussed here is that this is the perfect time to install community gardens and encourage people, poor or not, to grow more of their own food. These gardens could fill the gap in families' tight budgets. Burpee recently had a promotion--$10 for seeds that could produce $650 worth of produce. Spring is coming. Now's the time to get started.
I've been talking and writing about this on http://www.transplantedgardener.com.
Posted by Ginny Stibolt on 02/07/2009 @ 04:14AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
I and some farmers at a local city farmers market are working with "Dr Mike" from the local community college to set up a community "victory garden". Actual farmers will help the newbies instead of just professor types. We can also donate things like compost. You might want to consider a similar idea if ours works.
Posted by gail combs on 02/09/2009 @ 04:23AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
If my comment is not posted for the third try I'll give up here. "Sustainable food must equal just food. When making your next trip to the supermarket, corner store or farmers’ market, please remember to think of (and support) those whose food choices have already been made by their location, race and income level." Your last comment indicates that these locations do not exist. It also assumes that government is not responsible for shutting off access to PUBLIC gardens. I live in Los Angeles where the South Central Farmers (SCF)were shut out by a mayor who campaigned on helping the SCFand folded to city council and a land developer over the interests of the cummunity farm given to South East LA by Mayor Bradley some 15 years ago. Before this happened the Los Angeles County School District decided that the gardeners (mostly seniors) at PUBLIC community gardens were a risk to the students. Several weeks after we were asked to leave Milliken Middle school a student shot and killed another student on the fields adjacent to the garden. I lived in a apartment acroos the street from the gardens and when we were present in the garden the kids did not scale the fence to leave the premises. All I'm saying is let's not assume a guilt trip when feeding ourselves because our governemnt has decided how PUBLIC property can be used and stolen from people.
Posted by Susan Rigali on 02/07/2009 @ 08:54AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Greg and All,
Thank you for a thoughtful article and sevearl meaningful discussions following. One of the options to overcome 'food deserts' I've recently learned about is Urban Farming.
Certainly each of us can plant a small plot in our backyards or in containers on our decks, though that still doesn't address some of the lower income neighborhoods or demographics that might not do so. One option to bring the community in service together, to connect all ages to 'where our food comes from', and to bring the option of fresh foods to those who cannot afford it or aren't buying it due to availability or cost, is a non-profit organization: http://www.urbanfarming.org/ Watch their video as you click on their site for an understanding of what might already be in your community that you can actively support. Have any of you volunteered or worked with the organization?
I've only just learned of them and love the concept, and am just beginning the process of learning about the organization to see if it might be a more easy way to mobilize something in the greater Seattle area. We're fortunate to have a number of farmers markets in our areas and the WIC program within it, though it's only the beginning of what is needed and must be done.
Posted by Marlen Boivin on 02/07/2009 @ 09:10AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
I have not worked or volunteered for the organization that you mention, but I myself am an aspiring urban farmer (although quite an amateur one).
Growing food in urban areas has the potential to feed many of a cities' residents, and also is a way for those living without access to green space to reconnect to the land that sustains all of us.
I hope to have a new entry up about urban farming in the near future.
Thanks very much for your post!
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/08/2009 @ 09:13PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Here are a few really good links for food. The first lables all food markets, local farms, and specialty grocers. The second is, hands down, the most responsible farm I've found to date. The third is another great selection and I'm working on getting a co-op of friends together to save money (buy in bulk) during these hard economic times.
http://www.localharvest.org/
http://www.edenfoods.com/about/
http://www.homegrownharvest.com/information.html
Posted by Felipe Tendick-Mat... on 02/07/2009 @ 11:34AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Felipe, Thanks for your efforts, my e-mail is rbssj@earthlink.net. The reason I am giving it to you is so that those interested in their communities can link up and possibly solve some of the issues we have taken interest in.More links are paramount to our own education. A few more of interst on international level. PSRAST.org, i-sis.org, Oca.org, gefree.org, urbanfarming.org. Cheers for your time and caring. Take care, Susan
Posted by Susan Rigali on 02/13/2009 @ 01:36PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
If you think things are bad in the Lower 48, you should live up here in Alaska! It's not affordable, reaches up here less than fresh!! I am reduced to vitamin suppliments to get the USDA amounts of required vitamins and minerals. The only thing I really miss are those Jersey tomatoes. I can look at the tomato and just see that hothouse color! VIVA the vitamin!!
Posted by Judy Armstrong on 02/07/2009 @ 07:45PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
"Compared to the poorest neighborhoods, large numbers of supermarkets and gas stations with convenience stores are located in wealthier neighborhoods." ~Greg Plotkin
In my city, the grocery stores, convenience stores and gas stations closed in the poorest neighborhoods because they were continually being robbed at gunpoint. The cost of extra security guards and the loss of revenue from shoplifting doesn't make good business sense.
The only way to achieve food equity is for the government to open government run grocery stores in poor neighborhoods. No private business or corporation should be forced to lose money.
Posted by M W on 02/08/2009 @ 06:45AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
"So what does this tell us about access to local food? Considering the fact that poor, black neighborhoods are four times less likely to have access to supermarkets than wealthier white neighborhoods, we can assume that their access to local food (either through farmers’ markets, CSAs, or other means) is even more restricted." ~Greg Plotkin
I am happy to report that this isn't true in my city. Local farmers operate weekly 'farmers markets' in the poorest neighborhoods. They don't go to the wealthier neighborhoods because it's not as profitable. Wealthy people tend to drive directly to the farms instead of stopping at the farmers market. That puts poor neighborhoods at an advantage when it comes to farmers markets choosing their neighborhoods to set up shop.
Posted by M W on 02/08/2009 @ 06:56AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
I read a lot about how supermarkets and grocery stores being found more in economically advantaged neighborhoods, creating "food deserts." Well, guess where most of the local food co-ops with natural foods and local food are? You got it - in those same economically advantaged neighborhoods. So what is the message???
Posted by sarah cochran on 02/08/2009 @ 07:56PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Sarah, the message is that restricting access to healthy food is wrong.
Race and income level should not force anyone into a life of consuming only high fat processed food.
There are many ways to fight this injustice. To name a few: Community gardens, policies and programs that make local food affordable, farm to school programs, and nutrition education programs in high-poverty, low-income neighborhoods.
We also must, as was the main purpose of this entry, increase awareness that this situation even exists.
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/08/2009 @ 08:56PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
The question I have is if this is more of a social injustice or an economical injustice. For example, the nature of a business is to make money so a smart business would locate itself in an area where it can make money. Fair or unfair that is the law of supply and demand. Chicago can be a tuff place to live in. But I must say that educating the masses would to the most benefit to this situation. I'm going to look into this more.
Posted by Felipe Tendick-Mat... on 02/09/2009 @ 10:23AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Not only could (I believe) any supermarket chain make a profit in a low-income neighborhood, but the demand is as great (if not greater) for food accessability in these areas.
Issues of crime, income and race should (and cannot, for the practice of redlining is not only immoral but illegal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redlining) not preclude a neighborhood from access to healthy food.
I believe that the demand and potential for corporate profit are there. The problem is that these food companys have no incentive to provide the increased security and monitoring of these stores, even though these services would only shave a fraction off the profit they are sure to make.
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/09/2009 @ 11:02AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
I'm not sure if the demand is truly there. Do you have some examples where it is or has been?
Posted by Felipe Tendick-Mat... on 02/09/2009 @ 11:37AM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
Here's a blog post by the People's Grocery (one of the premier organizations working to increase food access) trying to dispel some of the myths of low-demand for healthy food in minority neighborhoods: http://peoplesgrocery.org/brahm/peoples-grocery/making-low-income-communities-visible
I'm just not sure how you could make an argument that there is NOT demand for healthy food. There is just no possible scenario where I can imagine people preferring fast food to fresh food (at least after being educated about the benefits of healthy food and detriments of high fat process food).
Posted by Greg Plotkin on 02/09/2009 @ 12:26PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.
I'm not too convinced on one piece of information but I do see where you are headed with this. You must check this out. I had no clue this was right by me in the south side of chicago. http://www.growinghomeinc.org/
There is good out there.
Posted by Felipe Tendick-Mat... on 02/09/2009 @ 06:00PM PT
You must be signed in to report content.