food access Tag

As we mark 25 years catalyzing change in the local food landscape, REAP Food Group has even more reason to celebrate: in collaboration with multiple local partners, we recently received several grants spanning projects related to food systems, farmer access to markets, and food education in public schools.  USDA  This year the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service awarded more than $32 million for projects nationwide to expand and strengthen local and regional food systems through the Regional Food System Partnerships (RFSP) grant program and Farmers Market Promotion Program, and nearly $73 million for projects that support farmers growing specialty crops through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP). REAP and partners submitted winning proposals for each grant program. In response to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regional food system, including the amplification of food system inequities, supply chain gaps, and more, many individuals and organizations in the 13-county area surrounding Madison knew the region had to address its vulnerabilities. A collection of food systems organizations and food councils in Dane County proposed the creation of a collaborative, community-driven process to assess food system gaps and weaknesses, and ultimately create a food action plan. An RFSP grant–one of only 10 in the nation–awarding almost $250,000, plus additional financial support from Dane County, will help create that plan. “The USDA Regional Food System Partnership grant awarded to REAP will allow for a deep community-engaged process, involving local farmers, food retailers, institutional buyers, food banks and pantries, community organizations, and local residents, that will inform the development of a long-desired food systems action plan for the Madison and Dane County region.” - Marcia Caton Campbell, Rooted READ THE FULL FOOD ACTION PLAN PRESS RELEASE HERE. Meanwhile, with USDA funds from both from the Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP) grant as well as Specialty Crop Block Grant via the WI Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP), REAP plans to expand the 21-year-old Farm Fresh Atlas–an annual print and internet guide to sustainable family farms, farmers’ markets, grocers, and restaurants–to represent the entire state of Wisconsin.  “Our primary objective is to implement an innovative marketing platform, elevating the experience for local food producers and consumers alike. Looking ahead, we aim to introduce valuable features to the Atlas, covering the entirety of Wisconsin and creating a comprehensive, centralized resource for consumers seeking locally sourced products.” - Noah Bloedorn, REAP Food Group NIFA Finally, the Food & Agriculture Service Learning Program (FASLP) announced 9 awardees whose proposals increase the knowledge of agricultural science and improve the nutritional health of children. The initiative is part of a broader effort to not only increase access to school meals for low-income children, but also to dramatically improve food quality. REAP’s winning proposal aims to integrate and expand food justice and education in MMSD schools by developing classroom curriculum, and offering high school students opportunities to engage local farmers and food justice leaders. Central to the project’s goals: help students build critical leadership skills that they can apply towards future careers. ...

students in front of Badger Rock Community Garden sign

Noah Reinkober, a student in the UW Madison School of Human Ecology, joined us this fall as a Farm to School intern, supporting Director Allison Pfaff Harris and REAP's partnership with MMSD Food and Nutrition. The following article was researched and written by Noah. Many people today are familiar with the concept of a “food desert," not just those in academia or the fields of sociology and human ecology. The term, which began being used in the 1990s, refers to a neighborhood, often in an urban environment, which has very little access to food. People living in a food desert may have restaurants in the area, but have to travel far to purchase foods at a grocery store, or they may simply be lacking in nearby food entirely. As the understanding of this issue has progressed over the last few decades, activists and researchers have proposed different labels for these areas. “Food swamp," a term which came into usage about a decade ago, refers to the same areas, but emphasizes the fact that these neighborhoods are often saturated with unhealthy foods, rather than lacking food entirely. Both of these terms are misleading when it comes to the conversation about food access, however. Deserts and swamps, unpleasant as they’re often perceived to be, are natural parts of the global environment with unique and thriving ecosystems. Neighborhoods which are deprived of healthy food options are not naturally occurring. To better describe this phenomena, Karen Washington, a Black farmer, activist, and organizer, came up with the term “food apartheid.” Rather than labeling a lack of food access as a natural occurrence, Washington’s term explicitly states the role that politics, economics, and histories of classism and racism play in the matter.  Food apartheid occurs when institutions fail to invest in communities which need the investment the most. Food apartheid occurs when institutions fail to invest in communities which need the investment the most. Segregation, poor public transportation, redlining, high food prices, lack of access to growing land, and perceived lack of profitability for private businesses are just a few examples of things which inform food apartheid, all of them products of society, not nature. Karen Washington grew up in New York City, so that is the context from which she is working, but the systemic racism and classism which created food insecurity in NYC exists in Madison, WI too.  According to Nicholas Heckman, a Public Health Planner in Policy and Food Security in Madison, because of how new the concept is, food apartheid “hasn’t yet been effectively measured at the local level.” Rather, data around food access and food insecurity often comes from the state or county, and researchers must use “various proxy data points and population characteristics to draw conclusions.” Though now dated, and lacking the context of COVID-19, Heckman’s 2016 report, Hunger and Food Security in Wisconsin and Dane County, sheds some light on the disparities which exist on the state and county levels. In 2016, it was reported that 12.4% of all people in Wisconsin, and 11.8% in Dane...

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