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March 26, 2007

March 26, 2007. Milwaukee’s “Food Desert”. Overabundance of fast food, liquor and convenience stores. Undersupply of quality grocery stores. Lack of safe, open spaces for walking, exercise, play. Disproportionate occurrence of diabetes, obesity, heart ailments.

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March 26, 2007

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  1. March 26, 2007

  2. Milwaukee’s “Food Desert” • Overabundance of fast food, liquor and convenience stores. • Undersupply of quality grocery stores. • Lack of safe, open spaces for walking, exercise, play. • Disproportionate occurrence of diabetes, obesity, heart ailments.

  3. Hunger Prevention vs. Food Security • Hunger prevention approach = a last minute intervention with free food. • Absolutely necessary • Runs the risk if institutionalizing the process. • Food Security approach = Looks at the entire food system process, from farm to fork. • Food Security is achieved when everyone has access to affordable nutritious food, purchased with their own resources.

  4. Fondy Food Center’s Approach Fondy Farmers’ Market

  5. One of the largest open air farmers’ markets in Milwaukee • 35 farmers, 32 of Hmong ancestry.

  6. Income Assistance Programming

  7. Taste the Season Cooking Demonstration Program(live and on Cable Access TV)

  8. Taste the Season Cooking Demonstration Program EXPANSION

  9. Girls’ Chef Academy • 12 week cooking and nutrition education program for teen and pre-teen girls • Rationale: • 80% of families with children are headed by a single parent. • Targets the “Gatekeeper to the family refrigerator” • Cooking and snack preparation usually falls to teen and pre-teen girls. • Girls are preparing 3-7 meals per week. • Usually involves convenience foods – i.e., frozen pizza, dehydrated potato flakes, Hamburger Helper • Curriculum: • Cooking based exploration of the food system • Emphasis on cooking from scratch • “This actually tastes good!”

  10. Good Food is … • Healthy • Green (i.e., produced with low environmental impact) • Affordable • Fair (i.e., equitable to all parties involved in production, processing, distribution and eating.)

  11. Is it fair to our farmers? • Launched GrowRight Program in 2006: • Began a Farm Evaluation process with our farmers in 2006. • Visited 25 farms.

  12. Tony Moua – Wisconsin’s newest farmer Grows on 6 acres just south of Milwaukee Mitchell Airport

  13. GrowRight Findings: • Farming 4 to 7 acres of land. • A 2nd job for most Hmong farmers • Involves the entire family • Very labor intensive – no tractors or other large equipment. • Minimal use of pesticides – crops are rotated, unusual planting patterns • No cost accounting - prices have not risen at Fondy in 7 years • No cool down facilities – EVERYTHING gets picked on Friday night. • Land is expensive • Most pay $250 to $400 per acre per season • Going rate should be $150 with tilling service, $80 without • Land is poor in quality – tends to flood or have drainage issues • Land is an annual Musical Chairs game. • Year to year leases

  14. The effect of the Musical Chairs game: • No real soil amendment activities. • Cannot get Organic designation. • Cannot plant higher value perennial crops. • Cannot invest in irrigation systems, cool down facilities • Cannot share large equipment.

  15. What to do? • Purchase or acquire 120 acres of land within the Greater Milwaukee region. • Rent land at more reasonable rates to around 20 Hmong farmers • 5 year leases • More perennial, higher value crops • Shared large equipment costs • Centralized shared cool down facility • To enable a more reasonable work schedule • Staffer on site to assist with • Technology, i.e., hoop houses, composting, crop rotation, organic soil amendment techniques. • Teach basic business practices such as cost accounting, marketing.

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