Eating better – for you and the planet
San Francisco City Hall planted it’s Victory Garden over the weekend.
A few weeks ago there was a sprawling lawn in front of City Hall. That was dug up (the sod was given away) and transformed into garden beds.
The beds were planted over the weekend. Harvest is scheduled for Labor Day.
Not your typical City Hall thing to do. But this exercise is somewhat reminiscent of “Victory Gardens” which the government encouraged citizens to do during World War I & II… out of necessity.
Necessity is truly here again.
Food costs have been inflating dramatically. More people now cannot afford to eat nutritionally.
And there’s the food security issue… how many tainted food outbreaks have occurred over the past year?
And, we have global warming/climate challenge. On average, your food has traveled 1,500 miles to your plate… a not insignificant carbon footprint.
17% of our petroleum consumption is spent on farm food production and food processing, packaging, transportation and refrigeration. What you grow and harvest to eat decreases food related petroleum use.
The San Francisco Victory Garden Project is a public example and encouragement to reconsider our habits as well as our relationship with food.
City Slicker Farms is a co-creator of this project.
City Slicker Farms started in 2001 and is active in West Oakland (across the Bay from San Francisco).
Their goal is for 40% of West Oakland’s veggies and fruits to be grown in West Oakland through backyard gardens, community gardens and any plot of land they can put into production.
Noble goal.
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