The availability of healthy food significantly impacts the health of a community. Without access to healthy foods, a nutritious diet and good health are out of reach for many. How best can the community accommodate the surge in interest in community gardening and encourage participation in areas most lacking in healthy food choices?
What are the major challenges and opportunities to building a more equitable food system in our community?
What appropriate tools can be used to facilitate healthy food?
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18 comments:
Every neighborhood has a corner store. Each cornerstore should get incentives or be encouraged to offer healthy food, accept WIC vouchers, and SNAP debit cards. Pricing of healthy foods is also a barrier to neighborhood use. We need to build the capacity of these markets already in communities. Help purchase refridgeration and develop a farm to cornerstore initiative, an inexpensive win-win solution.
We need land acquisition for large full service grocery stores. We need mobile farmer markets and healthy food in corners stores within communities that are distressed. Transportation is often difficult or non-existent and food systems need to come right to these neighborhoods. Availability of healthy food should be everyone's concern because it is a basic need for health. Food access should not just be a luxury afforded to the wealthy.
We need to make the healthy choice the easy choice. Corner food stores and grocery stores in low income neighborhoods carrying healthy products at reasonable prices. Support school food programs to increase healthy choices and decrease unhealthy choices.
I would imagine part of the problem is economics- healthier food is expensive. Perhaps tax breaks for supermarkets in lower income neighborhoods? Restrictions on new fast food outlets?
Have school lunch programs only provide healthy foods…not just as choices.
Provide affordable healthy foods.
Eliminating food deserts, add a farmers market
Access to grocery stores or markets that sell fresh produce.
Too many convenient stores & fast food in one community.
Market system
Ease of purchasing fast food compared to making food (Farmers markets in poorer areas?)
Community gardens may help
Better grocery/ produce options needed in low-income neighborhoods
A central farmer's market should be developed in Old Salem community and rooftop gardens should be promoted and shared with community members in need of fresh food.
Maintain farmland!
Maintain forests!
Save land - building parking decks not big lots
Allow & subsidize community gardens
Forbid "rules" that say you can't put gardens in front yards or have clotheslines
We need to find a way for quality food markets in East Winston and downtown.
Local community coops are expanding, and we need to spread the concept throughout our community.
Need support for AG, community gardens, location of markets, grocery stores.
Ordinances to support urban AG, gardens, green activities such as composting
AG land easement or tax credit.
Assuring access to healthy foods for everyone.
Building more grocery stores within existing neighborhoods.
Providing larger food benefit system via DSS
Create public awareness of hunger in County.
Need population density & income to sustain more grocery stores. If large chains won't come in develop cooperatives
Assuring safety for small business owners may be an issue.
If you mean serving the underserved, the challenge is that a business won't open in an area that doesn't fit their eocnomic parameters. The opportunity is for new ideas about food - like mobile farmers markets, food cooperatives, better transportation opportunities to better food suppliers.
Coordinate with Agricultural Extension, NRCS, local garden clubs, etc.
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