Jun 5, 2008

Hope grows in a food desert

Guest Opinion

By Lucia Constantine

Every time I walk into a store like Whole Foods, I am overwhelmed by the selection of produce: everything from apples and bananas to mangos and avocados, usually labeled organic. As a conscientious consumer, I try to buy locally grown and organic produce as much as possible, and because I have the transportation, time and funds to shop at Whole Foods, I am able to include organic produce in my diet. But what about the low-income shopper who doesn't even have access to a basic supermarket much less a Whole Foods? For residents of East Palo Alto, this is a reality. While Palo Alto has a plethora of supermarkets, specialty grocery stores, and farmers markets, East Palo Alto has convenience stores, corner markets and fast-food restaurants. Often unable to include fresh fruit and vegetables in their diet, residents of East Palo Alto suffer increased risk of obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

The increasing food gap between the rich and the poor is largely due to the global food system currently in place, which involves a complex chain of production, distribution, transportation and marketing. The supposed efficiencies of the long-distance food chain have left many people malnourished through the creation of "food deserts," a cityscape or rural area where affordable health food is unavailable or inaccessible.

East Palo Alto is an example of a veritable "food desert." The last supermarket, a Safeway store, closed in 1974. To purchase fresh produce, residents of East Palo Alto must travel outside the city limits. For many who are pressed for time and money, this is not an option: "A lot of families in East Palo Alto are working two jobs, so they come home late, their kids are waiting for them, and what do they do? They stop at McDonald's or Taco Bell and get a meal for under two bucks," explains Wolfram Alderson, executive director of Collective Roots, a nonprofit organization based in East Palo Alto involved in food system change. A recent study by the California Center for Public Health Advocacy has demonstrated restricted access to healthy food and the prevalence of cheap junk food high in calories and sugar content but low in nutritional value have contributed to rates of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

What's happening in East Palo Alto is not unique. All over the country, low-income communities are being marginalized by a food system not serving its primary purpose of feeding its constituents as supermarkets leave urban and rural areas where poor people live in search of more lucrative markets in the suburbs. About 30 million people in the United States are reported to be unable to buy enough food to maintain good health. In what would seem like an unlikely combination, the same people who do not get enough to eat are suffering worse health outcomes like diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. Given the option to purchase healthy food locally, low-income people would spend their money more wisely.

In response to the growing food gap, many communities are looking at ways to revitalize the local food system through projects like farmers markets and community gardens. Local food systems can counteract some of the systemic problems associated with the globalization of food and provide tailored solutions for the different needs of communities. Spearheaded by members of the community and nonprofit organizations, efforts are currently under way to improve the food system in East Palo Alto, where a community farmers market opened Sunday. This marked a turning point in a city that has had no supermarket for 20 years.

"The people in East Palo Alto want to have options. Right now there are none but with the opening of the farmers market, we will have healthy food right around the corner," said Lettecia Rayson, longtime resident of the city and chair of the East Palo Alto Community Farmers Market Organizing Committee.

The residents of East Palo Alto deserve access to fresh produce because food should be a right and not a privilege. As our food system has become increasingly global, we have become increasingly disconnected from the food we eat. In order to make food accessible to all members of the community, we must regain local control of our food system. By shopping at local farmers markets, we provide essential income for local farmers, increase low-income families' access to fresh produce and keep money within our communities.



Lucia Constantine is a sophomore studying human biology at Stanford University. She is originally from Jacksonville, Fla.