This week we talked alot about food insecurity which involved seasonal eating. The seasonal food packet that we looked showed that if we as a country ate seasonally we would be in a food crisis. Most of the foods we eat on the regular are not in season and wouldn't be available to us if we ate seasonally. Being able to eat seasonally would be difficult because we have such a short growing period in massachusetts and have to resort to importing our foods. If we was able to eat seasonally our food would be healthier and we would eliminate transportation prices. Which brings me to Averyl and Dylan the couple that started their own garden to help eliminate the food insecurity in their community and others. The role that they took on will have a significant impact on the 1 in 5 children that goes to bed hungry in the community. The more people that are willing to take this initiative the closer we will be to ending food insecurity.
This week's discussion was clarifying for me because I never really thought in death about the food I eat but always questioned certain things. For example growing up when my mom would stop at a farmers market I would always say and think “why is she buying food off these strangers, we don't know what they did to this food” and she would always tell me “This is fresh food ” I never understood. Growing up in my neighborhood there is a food project organization where they grow fruits and vegetables ,over the summer they employ teens to help out with the garden and to do outreach. In attention in my neighborhood there is a farmers market that comes in the spring/summer and selles every tuesday and thursday. It wasn't until I learned more about the food project after applying and riding pass the farmers market every tuesday and thursday after school and work that everything clicked. Now I understand why my mom buys food off these random strangers and why I can't find my favorite fruit (mango) in the grocery store all year around. Food insecurity and seasonal eating has been around me all my life but it took a few different interactions for me to recognize it.
Sometimes the freshest fruit doesn't look the prettiest, and sometimes the people who sell the freshest fruit don't look trustworthy, but at least you can see their face when you buy the fruit or vegetables from them. With supermarkets, you don't know how many people touched your food or anything like that, all you see is a price tag.
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