1 00:00:02,600 --> 00:00:04,400 Speaker 1: When I was a kid, I used to read a 2 00:00:04,519 --> 00:00:08,480 Speaker 1: lot of science magazines three to one, Contact pop side 3 00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:12,440 Speaker 1: Popular Mechanics, and I like them because I love to 4 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:16,079 Speaker 1: look at the inventions. I genuinely wanted to know what 5 00:00:16,200 --> 00:00:20,200 Speaker 1: the future would look like. And sometimes the ideas were funny, 6 00:00:20,239 --> 00:00:23,279 Speaker 1: like one scientist decided peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were 7 00:00:23,360 --> 00:00:27,720 Speaker 1: too hard to make, so he invented individual jelly slices 8 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 1: that you could lay onto the bread instead of spreading it, 9 00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:34,080 Speaker 1: kind of like craft singles, and I have yet to 10 00:00:34,080 --> 00:00:37,120 Speaker 1: see those in the real world. Some of the inventions 11 00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:40,240 Speaker 1: were ingenious, like what if you could take your sunscreen 12 00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:43,000 Speaker 1: in a pill instead of having to deal with applying it? 13 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:47,160 Speaker 1: And sometimes well, there were things I still think about, 14 00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:50,680 Speaker 1: like the idea of vertical farms. What if you could 15 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:55,480 Speaker 1: grow entire farms inside skyscrapers and rotate the crops to 16 00:00:55,520 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 1: face the sun. And what if these skyscraper farms were 17 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:02,200 Speaker 1: in cities so you could reduce the distance to get 18 00:01:02,240 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: all this fresh food to people. It's kind of incredible, 19 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:10,520 Speaker 1: right In some ways, vertical farms are like robot butlers 20 00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:14,800 Speaker 1: and jet packs, these things science magazines and the jetsons 21 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:17,920 Speaker 1: told us about inventions that feel like they should be 22 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:22,880 Speaker 1: just around the corner to solve all our problems. But 23 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:25,840 Speaker 1: what if we don't have time to wait. According to 24 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:28,920 Speaker 1: the U s d A, about twenty three point five 25 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:33,479 Speaker 1: million people live in food deserts today. Those are areas 26 00:01:33,520 --> 00:01:38,440 Speaker 1: where it's difficult or impossible to access affordable, healthy food options, 27 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:42,319 Speaker 1: and it's no surprise that nearly half of these food 28 00:01:42,319 --> 00:01:46,400 Speaker 1: deserts are in low income areas, as well, areas where 29 00:01:46,480 --> 00:01:49,800 Speaker 1: grocery stores don't think they can make a profit, so 30 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: people are forced to make do with what's available. They 31 00:01:53,080 --> 00:01:56,680 Speaker 1: eat fast food or junk food because that's what's near, 32 00:01:57,400 --> 00:02:02,120 Speaker 1: which leads to all sorts of health complications. It's a cycle, 33 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:05,600 Speaker 1: and it is depressing. But there are things we can 34 00:02:05,640 --> 00:02:08,720 Speaker 1: do right now. It turns out growing your own food 35 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:12,160 Speaker 1: is one of the most promising solutions. We don't often 36 00:02:12,200 --> 00:02:15,400 Speaker 1: think of gardening as a path to self reliance, but growing, 37 00:02:16,040 --> 00:02:18,840 Speaker 1: whether that's part of a community garden or even in 38 00:02:18,840 --> 00:02:23,239 Speaker 1: your own backyard, allows people to eat healthier, disrupt a 39 00:02:23,320 --> 00:02:27,800 Speaker 1: broken system, and meet their own food demands. And along 40 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:35,720 Speaker 1: the way, it should make for happier and healthier communities too. Hey, 41 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:38,800 Speaker 1: there I'm Mongais Articular, a co host of Part Time Genius, 42 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:41,400 Speaker 1: one of the co founders of Mental Flaws. And this 43 00:02:42,040 --> 00:02:45,800 Speaker 1: is Humans Growing Stuff, a collaboration from my Heart Radio 44 00:02:45,960 --> 00:02:48,680 Speaker 1: and your friends at Miracle Grow. My goal is to 45 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:52,639 Speaker 1: make this the most human show about plants you'll ever 46 00:02:52,720 --> 00:02:56,960 Speaker 1: listen to, and along the way, we'll share sweet, inspiring stories, 47 00:02:57,080 --> 00:03:00,200 Speaker 1: tips and tricks to nurture your plant addiction, and just 48 00:03:00,440 --> 00:03:04,200 Speaker 1: enough science to make you sound like an expert. In 49 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:07,720 Speaker 1: today's episode, we're going to explore the issues surrounding food 50 00:03:07,800 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 1: deserts and the bootstrapped community builders and leaders who are 51 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:20,519 Speaker 1: working on growing solutions to eliminate food insecurity. Chapter six, 52 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:27,280 Speaker 1: Can growing food Grow Freedom? The truth is, food deserts 53 00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:31,160 Speaker 1: aren't a new phenomena. Years ago, I was driving into Wilmington, 54 00:03:31,240 --> 00:03:33,760 Speaker 1: Delaware to pick up a friend from the train station. 55 00:03:35,240 --> 00:03:38,120 Speaker 1: I actually went to elementary school in Wilmington's My school 56 00:03:38,200 --> 00:03:40,280 Speaker 1: buzz used to take me along this same route. But 57 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:43,400 Speaker 1: before I picked up my friend, I needed to run 58 00:03:43,440 --> 00:03:46,760 Speaker 1: into a grocery store, so I stopped by this familiar chain. 59 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: But what I saw inside was dismal. I remember being 60 00:03:52,360 --> 00:03:56,119 Speaker 1: struck by how sad the offerings were the shelves were 61 00:03:56,160 --> 00:04:00,760 Speaker 1: barely stocked, the produce was meager and old, and for me, 62 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: the experience was jarring. This felt like the flimsiest excuse 63 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:09,240 Speaker 1: for a grocery store, and there really weren't other options around. 64 00:04:10,840 --> 00:04:14,200 Speaker 1: Of course, this isn't a problem that's unique to Wilmington's. 65 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:17,040 Speaker 1: All over the country you can find areas that are 66 00:04:17,080 --> 00:04:20,680 Speaker 1: flush with grocery stores. They have aisles upon aisles of 67 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:24,080 Speaker 1: fresh produce, and then on the other side of town 68 00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:27,960 Speaker 1: you can pass through neighborhoods with a single poorly stocked store, 69 00:04:28,720 --> 00:04:32,640 Speaker 1: or sometimes areas where they're just dollar stores or corner 70 00:04:32,680 --> 00:04:36,760 Speaker 1: stores as replacements. So I've been wondering what's being done 71 00:04:36,760 --> 00:04:40,120 Speaker 1: to change or combat this issue. Kamal Bell is on 72 00:04:40,160 --> 00:04:43,599 Speaker 1: the front lines of fighting food deserts. Easy teacher and 73 00:04:43,640 --> 00:04:47,120 Speaker 1: the founder of Sankofa Farms in North Carolina, just outside 74 00:04:47,120 --> 00:04:50,159 Speaker 1: of Derham. The farm is focused on serving those in 75 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:53,839 Speaker 1: the Grham and Orange County urban areas that are effectively 76 00:04:53,880 --> 00:04:59,000 Speaker 1: food deserts. Each week, Kamal and his team delivered dehydrated chips, 77 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:02,600 Speaker 1: farm fresh egg, and honey, all made for the bounty 78 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:06,120 Speaker 1: of his farm and his bee hives. Additionally, Kamal has 79 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:08,760 Speaker 1: made it his personal mission to teach students in these 80 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:12,360 Speaker 1: areas stem and agriculture to set them up for success 81 00:05:12,440 --> 00:05:15,280 Speaker 1: and the nutrient rich future where they can grow their 82 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:19,479 Speaker 1: food not only for themselves but for their communities. I 83 00:05:19,520 --> 00:05:21,719 Speaker 1: called up Kamal to hear more about his journey with 84 00:05:21,800 --> 00:05:25,000 Speaker 1: Sankofa and how he seemed to change in the communities 85 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:33,760 Speaker 1: he serves, especially when they have access to healthy foods. Hey, Comal, Hey, 86 00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:37,000 Speaker 1: how are you doing doing well? First things first, I 87 00:05:37,040 --> 00:05:39,840 Speaker 1: want to hear how you got into farming. All right, 88 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:43,320 Speaker 1: So I was on track to be a veterinarian and 89 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:45,160 Speaker 1: I was sitting in class one day and this dawned 90 00:05:45,200 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: on me. It was like, what are you gonna do 91 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:50,360 Speaker 1: with this? That really serves people, and that serves you 92 00:05:51,120 --> 00:05:53,479 Speaker 1: and me and my wife we will find out we 93 00:05:53,480 --> 00:05:56,200 Speaker 1: were having our first son. So I was thinking about 94 00:05:56,680 --> 00:06:00,640 Speaker 1: what could we do to always support him, like no 95 00:06:00,680 --> 00:06:03,360 Speaker 1: matter what happened, whether we were unemployed, whether we employed, 96 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:06,640 Speaker 1: if something goes wrong, and how can we always make 97 00:06:06,680 --> 00:06:09,400 Speaker 1: sure this young man is taken care of? And farming 98 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:12,040 Speaker 1: dawned on me. And also at this time, I was 99 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:15,360 Speaker 1: working on my masters. I was studying these things called 100 00:06:15,400 --> 00:06:19,440 Speaker 1: food deserts, and I'm thinking about what's the common thread 101 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:23,320 Speaker 1: that connects everything and farming was that thing? And what 102 00:06:23,480 --> 00:06:25,480 Speaker 1: sort of gave you the confidence that you could grow 103 00:06:25,560 --> 00:06:28,560 Speaker 1: stuff and and be a farmer? That's a great question, Like, 104 00:06:28,920 --> 00:06:31,159 Speaker 1: that's a great question. Not a lot of people ask 105 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:34,359 Speaker 1: me that. So the what gave what drives me to 106 00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:37,520 Speaker 1: do that is one. I feel like I'm really helping 107 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:41,840 Speaker 1: my community. I'm curious. Santo actually has a few meanings, right, Okay, 108 00:06:41,880 --> 00:06:43,920 Speaker 1: can can you talk about the alternate meetings of it? Yes? 109 00:06:44,000 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 1: So sant cofa also means to go back and get it. 110 00:06:47,560 --> 00:06:51,160 Speaker 1: So it comes out of the Aconn language in West Africa, 111 00:06:51,600 --> 00:06:55,719 Speaker 1: and it's symbolic or represented by a mythical bird. And 112 00:06:55,920 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 1: as it's moving forward, its head is turned backward. If 113 00:06:59,720 --> 00:07:02,880 Speaker 1: we want to fixed problems in today's time, we have 114 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:05,599 Speaker 1: to look back in our ancestry, in our history to 115 00:07:05,680 --> 00:07:09,960 Speaker 1: be able to attack these issues. Saying kofa came up 116 00:07:10,080 --> 00:07:12,000 Speaker 1: when I learned about these food deserts, and I was 117 00:07:12,000 --> 00:07:14,200 Speaker 1: just like, how can we get people food? If we're 118 00:07:14,200 --> 00:07:16,040 Speaker 1: trying to get people food, of course we need more 119 00:07:16,080 --> 00:07:20,040 Speaker 1: people to produce food. Um, there's also allocation issue that 120 00:07:20,080 --> 00:07:23,200 Speaker 1: goes into the whole making of the food desert. But 121 00:07:23,400 --> 00:07:25,240 Speaker 1: for me, like what I felt like I can really 122 00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:28,360 Speaker 1: impact was the growing of the food. At first, I 123 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:30,679 Speaker 1: started out selling dehydrat and chips. I have a commercial 124 00:07:30,720 --> 00:07:32,960 Speaker 1: dehydrot like fifty ft away from me in my garage 125 00:07:32,960 --> 00:07:35,200 Speaker 1: that we used to use. And the whole idea behind 126 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:37,239 Speaker 1: that was to get people who were living in food 127 00:07:37,240 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 1: deserts and affected by food and security healthier food. So 128 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:46,360 Speaker 1: we should dehydra apples, pineapples, kale, mangoes, cinnamon, apples, bananas. 129 00:07:46,720 --> 00:07:48,560 Speaker 1: We used to make all these products and get them 130 00:07:48,560 --> 00:07:51,560 Speaker 1: to people who are affected our food and secure areas. 131 00:07:51,640 --> 00:07:55,280 Speaker 1: And for me, East Greensboro is a food desert through 132 00:07:55,320 --> 00:07:58,440 Speaker 1: and through, but in West Greensboro you had a more 133 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:01,720 Speaker 1: fluid side of the the town. You have like this overabundance 134 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:04,800 Speaker 1: of healthy food white you have food stops everywhere. But 135 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:08,120 Speaker 1: we were able to streamline the leverage that we had 136 00:08:08,120 --> 00:08:10,800 Speaker 1: created with the dehydrant chips, and then that led us 137 00:08:10,800 --> 00:08:13,920 Speaker 1: into getting the farm. I know you spent a lot 138 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:17,200 Speaker 1: of time delivering food to various communities and groups. Can 139 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,080 Speaker 1: you talking a little bit about the diversity of groups 140 00:08:19,120 --> 00:08:22,120 Speaker 1: that you're passing food along too. So there's an organization 141 00:08:22,200 --> 00:08:25,360 Speaker 1: called Root Causes that works with Farmer Food's a food 142 00:08:25,400 --> 00:08:29,000 Speaker 1: distribution uh, it's a cook in Derhm and they get 143 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:31,640 Speaker 1: food to people who have been recommended by the doctor. 144 00:08:32,280 --> 00:08:34,480 Speaker 1: And I like the food we really fresh, so like 145 00:08:34,559 --> 00:08:36,760 Speaker 1: I'll go to the extra mile to make sure it's 146 00:08:36,800 --> 00:08:39,079 Speaker 1: like far Fresh is not as it hasn't been sent 147 00:08:39,160 --> 00:08:41,920 Speaker 1: for a couple of hours. I'll go wake up at 148 00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: around five thirty, get there around six thirty tomorrow morning. 149 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:48,920 Speaker 1: So jobs to the farm. Harvest Food had that dropped 150 00:08:48,920 --> 00:08:51,720 Speaker 1: off by nine thirty, and then they distributed it in 151 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:53,880 Speaker 1: their bags like it's part of a larger system. They 152 00:08:53,920 --> 00:08:57,000 Speaker 1: send bags of healthy produce to people. It's just been 153 00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:59,960 Speaker 1: really cool to work with organizations that can do the 154 00:09:00,040 --> 00:09:03,200 Speaker 1: handom distribution aspect. It's just it's just really cool. It's 155 00:09:03,200 --> 00:09:06,240 Speaker 1: just really cool. There's a teaching component the story. It 156 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:08,880 Speaker 1: involves you being at a public school and R Yes, 157 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:12,240 Speaker 1: I actually drew up this idea of the farm and 158 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:14,719 Speaker 1: took to the principle because I was teaching agriculture at 159 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:17,360 Speaker 1: the school. And the students will gravitate towards the work 160 00:09:17,600 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 1: and they will also change their behavior. So I saw 161 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:24,199 Speaker 1: that introducing them to agriculture gave them a foundation outside 162 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:26,160 Speaker 1: the classroom, and that's I think that's what we want 163 00:09:26,240 --> 00:09:28,360 Speaker 1: education to do. Like it just can't be useful in 164 00:09:28,400 --> 00:09:30,800 Speaker 1: the school. So I literally took them out to the 165 00:09:30,840 --> 00:09:33,640 Speaker 1: farm and two of the students, one of them, his 166 00:09:33,679 --> 00:09:36,160 Speaker 1: birthday is actually today. His name is Kamani. I have 167 00:09:36,200 --> 00:09:38,319 Speaker 1: a birthday Comini. He'll be listening to this at some point, 168 00:09:38,559 --> 00:09:41,720 Speaker 1: having another student, Cameron, whose birthday was last week. They 169 00:09:41,800 --> 00:09:44,560 Speaker 1: actually have stayed with the program from its inception all 170 00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:46,920 Speaker 1: the way until now. So it's been really cool to 171 00:09:46,920 --> 00:09:49,760 Speaker 1: see their growth and see their knowledge based growth, and 172 00:09:49,760 --> 00:09:51,960 Speaker 1: then see them be able to say, hey, yo, i 173 00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:54,960 Speaker 1: am in this food instant care area, but I'm in 174 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:57,760 Speaker 1: this place where I have access to fresh food because 175 00:09:57,840 --> 00:09:59,320 Speaker 1: I know how to do it and how to grow it, 176 00:09:59,559 --> 00:10:02,079 Speaker 1: and I can take it home with me. I'm curious, 177 00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:04,520 Speaker 1: just as we get into food deserts, how would you 178 00:10:04,559 --> 00:10:08,040 Speaker 1: define the food desert. That's a great question, um, because 179 00:10:08,240 --> 00:10:11,640 Speaker 1: terminology can be use it gets people to confuse them. 180 00:10:11,800 --> 00:10:15,960 Speaker 1: I just define it as a place where you don't 181 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:20,400 Speaker 1: have access to healthy food. So it gets tricky because 182 00:10:20,400 --> 00:10:23,120 Speaker 1: the U s A has definition and then people saying 183 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: not food desert, it's like a food apart tide. I 184 00:10:26,080 --> 00:10:28,600 Speaker 1: hear all that, but I might look the reality is 185 00:10:29,120 --> 00:10:32,680 Speaker 1: people want to eat healthy and don't have access to it. 186 00:10:32,679 --> 00:10:36,440 Speaker 1: And in economics goes into it because you look at cars, 187 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:38,800 Speaker 1: like some people might not have cars to to drive 188 00:10:38,880 --> 00:10:41,079 Speaker 1: from the store. Then you look at how the city 189 00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:44,040 Speaker 1: is drawing out like city planet, goes into it. Um 190 00:10:44,160 --> 00:10:47,000 Speaker 1: through these communities, I'm like, dam, I'm tired of seeing 191 00:10:47,000 --> 00:10:49,439 Speaker 1: corner stores. Everywhere you see corner stores or you're left 192 00:10:49,559 --> 00:10:51,199 Speaker 1: or you're right. You don't even have to go with 193 00:10:51,559 --> 00:10:55,319 Speaker 1: all this unhealthy food. When you start seeing family dollars 194 00:10:55,360 --> 00:10:58,840 Speaker 1: in communities, that's a pretty good identified that it's a 195 00:10:58,840 --> 00:11:02,720 Speaker 1: food desert. It's just any place that I go in 196 00:11:03,040 --> 00:11:06,040 Speaker 1: and I know that people you can like really see 197 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:07,600 Speaker 1: a food and just by the how you see the 198 00:11:07,679 --> 00:11:10,480 Speaker 1: people in the area. In an urban setting, now in 199 00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:14,360 Speaker 1: the rural setting, you're even further from a grocery store 200 00:11:14,520 --> 00:11:17,280 Speaker 1: because our farmers in a rural area, you would think, 201 00:11:17,320 --> 00:11:20,440 Speaker 1: since there's farms around there, getting healthy food, but a 202 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:22,560 Speaker 1: lot of the farms aren't producing that quality of food. 203 00:11:22,600 --> 00:11:24,800 Speaker 1: So we're really talking about like a really a really 204 00:11:24,880 --> 00:11:28,120 Speaker 1: large issue that affects people, that affects a lot of people. 205 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:32,840 Speaker 1: What you think to be I think it's a multi 206 00:11:33,000 --> 00:11:35,359 Speaker 1: tier plan. I think we have to look at food distribution. 207 00:11:35,840 --> 00:11:39,199 Speaker 1: We definitely have to look at agricultural education and really 208 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:43,360 Speaker 1: getting kids in because if once these students get in 209 00:11:43,640 --> 00:11:46,280 Speaker 1: permanent situations like they can turn their backyards into a 210 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:49,320 Speaker 1: into a guarden, everybody has to pitch in. So I 211 00:11:49,360 --> 00:11:51,560 Speaker 1: think we have to look at distribution, We have to 212 00:11:51,559 --> 00:11:54,400 Speaker 1: look at getting the younger generation to agriculture, and then 213 00:11:54,440 --> 00:11:57,079 Speaker 1: overwall awareness, I think a lot of people aren't aware 214 00:11:57,520 --> 00:12:00,400 Speaker 1: that they're living in a food insecure area. Once you 215 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:03,199 Speaker 1: would come aware, we can start troubleshooting and working with 216 00:12:03,559 --> 00:12:07,080 Speaker 1: structures in our communities that are trying to fix the issue. 217 00:12:07,360 --> 00:12:09,520 Speaker 1: But even if you can't get to some of these 218 00:12:09,960 --> 00:12:13,360 Speaker 1: large organic like groceries and stuff there, it's expensive, right 219 00:12:13,480 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 1: it is. There's a real value to being able to 220 00:12:15,400 --> 00:12:18,520 Speaker 1: grow your own it is. And then the economic piece 221 00:12:18,559 --> 00:12:22,760 Speaker 1: where people if if not saying it's a one it's 222 00:12:22,800 --> 00:12:27,400 Speaker 1: like a remedy for everybody, but there are people who 223 00:12:28,280 --> 00:12:31,800 Speaker 1: want to do better in their communities and agriculture can 224 00:12:31,800 --> 00:12:35,640 Speaker 1: be that tool that resource because like one thing that's 225 00:12:35,679 --> 00:12:37,600 Speaker 1: like that you hear a lot is that the community 226 00:12:37,600 --> 00:12:41,760 Speaker 1: don't have resources. There are resources in these areas. Just 227 00:12:41,840 --> 00:12:44,559 Speaker 1: change your perspective on where you are and you can 228 00:12:44,600 --> 00:12:48,160 Speaker 1: begin to reimagine how you can change that area, your 229 00:12:48,280 --> 00:12:51,280 Speaker 1: resource in your community. And look at this land that's there, 230 00:12:51,400 --> 00:12:54,640 Speaker 1: look at the way the houses are situated. So there 231 00:12:54,640 --> 00:12:56,600 Speaker 1: are people who I think were really if they had 232 00:12:56,880 --> 00:13:00,000 Speaker 1: access to the resource, were really changed. And I see 233 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:03,080 Speaker 1: that especially with the bees. People like love bees. My 234 00:13:03,120 --> 00:13:06,520 Speaker 1: wife just got certified two weeks ago. I'm certified for 235 00:13:06,640 --> 00:13:08,839 Speaker 1: the students of certified beekeepers. I never know I was 236 00:13:08,880 --> 00:13:10,200 Speaker 1: gonna be a beekeeper. You would have asked me three 237 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:11,760 Speaker 1: years ago, I would have well, four years ago, the 238 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:14,560 Speaker 1: bere like I'm scared of bees. But just getting people 239 00:13:15,080 --> 00:13:18,520 Speaker 1: access to resources and opportunities and will see a shift 240 00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:20,320 Speaker 1: in a lot of things. I mean, my my favorite 241 00:13:20,320 --> 00:13:22,240 Speaker 1: thing on your I was looking at the store on 242 00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:25,000 Speaker 1: your website, and you know you've got some lettuce and 243 00:13:25,160 --> 00:13:29,160 Speaker 1: T shirts and stuff, and then it's like Lesa be high. Yeah, yeah, 244 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:33,680 Speaker 1: yeah yeah, And I think that's a program that's going 245 00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:38,640 Speaker 1: to really be really take off because right, was like 246 00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:41,080 Speaker 1: this whole movement start with us seeing the police botell 247 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:44,000 Speaker 1: with George Floyd. When that wave hit, there was a 248 00:13:44,000 --> 00:13:46,920 Speaker 1: lot of attention that went to black farmers and black 249 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:49,760 Speaker 1: people in agricultural spaces and we got like this wave 250 00:13:49,840 --> 00:13:53,040 Speaker 1: of followers out of nowhere. And somebody hit me up 251 00:13:53,040 --> 00:13:54,920 Speaker 1: on Twitter the day They're like, can I at least 252 00:13:54,920 --> 00:13:57,400 Speaker 1: to be high? And I'm like, where do you live? 253 00:13:57,440 --> 00:13:59,000 Speaker 1: He was like California And I was like, well, you 254 00:13:59,040 --> 00:14:01,120 Speaker 1: can lease it at sent off. It will send you 255 00:14:01,160 --> 00:14:03,240 Speaker 1: the honey from your high. He was like, I can't 256 00:14:03,240 --> 00:14:05,240 Speaker 1: wait till the next spring, but I think we're gonna 257 00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:09,679 Speaker 1: see a really big jump in that program next year 258 00:14:09,720 --> 00:14:13,120 Speaker 1: because right now we're at forty behalves, so we wouldn't 259 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:14,920 Speaker 1: have a lot. I've never seen that before that. I 260 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:19,760 Speaker 1: loved it so much just looking at um, you know, 261 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:22,040 Speaker 1: you know, but one of the things you were hitting 262 00:14:22,040 --> 00:14:25,480 Speaker 1: on with social issues and and uh, when you're not 263 00:14:25,600 --> 00:14:29,320 Speaker 1: dependent on others for food and you're not feeling that insecurity, 264 00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:32,520 Speaker 1: then you have space to concentrate and change other things 265 00:14:32,560 --> 00:14:34,760 Speaker 1: in your life, you know. And and I was curious 266 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:37,000 Speaker 1: if you're thinking about that as well. Yeah, if I 267 00:14:37,040 --> 00:14:39,320 Speaker 1: think about like how much time that we spend going 268 00:14:39,360 --> 00:14:42,960 Speaker 1: to a grocery store, and society is already fast paced 269 00:14:43,320 --> 00:14:45,480 Speaker 1: where we want to be, Like, honest, we're doing all 270 00:14:45,480 --> 00:14:48,400 Speaker 1: these things at some level to eat. Everybody wants to heat. 271 00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:52,320 Speaker 1: But if we could just start going into this for ourselves, 272 00:14:52,840 --> 00:14:55,800 Speaker 1: we would have more control over every other aspects of 273 00:14:55,800 --> 00:14:57,800 Speaker 1: our life, especially our health. We had top of the 274 00:14:57,840 --> 00:15:01,320 Speaker 1: quality between healthy eating and you're health. Those things go 275 00:15:01,480 --> 00:15:03,840 Speaker 1: hand in the head. I don't think it's I think 276 00:15:03,840 --> 00:15:05,600 Speaker 1: it's a basic human necessity. Like us, we don't we 277 00:15:05,720 --> 00:15:08,320 Speaker 1: grow food for ourselves. I think we can really impact 278 00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:10,880 Speaker 1: and create a lot of change. I know you spent 279 00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:13,480 Speaker 1: a lot of time delivering food to to various communities 280 00:15:13,480 --> 00:15:17,680 Speaker 1: and groups. Have you seen the impact on the people themselves, 281 00:15:17,960 --> 00:15:20,680 Speaker 1: the people who are receiving the food. I have it, 282 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:24,760 Speaker 1: and that's primarily because we're dropping it off, and I 283 00:15:24,840 --> 00:15:28,280 Speaker 1: probably haven't because I haven't like consciously thought of it. Yeah, 284 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:30,000 Speaker 1: I feel like they made me cry. If somebody I 285 00:15:30,040 --> 00:15:32,120 Speaker 1: was just like, yeah, that kills just so good, and 286 00:15:32,720 --> 00:15:34,720 Speaker 1: my daughters liked it. On my son, I think i'd 287 00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:36,920 Speaker 1: probably like tear up. Yeah, of course, I don't want 288 00:15:36,920 --> 00:15:39,560 Speaker 1: to ever feel like the job is done and I 289 00:15:39,560 --> 00:15:42,680 Speaker 1: don't want to settle. So this morning in my mind, 290 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:44,600 Speaker 1: I'm like, oh, I didn't do enough, Like I'm that 291 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:46,560 Speaker 1: type of person, so I want to do more. That's 292 00:15:46,560 --> 00:15:48,960 Speaker 1: really cool. Come Al though, thank you so much for 293 00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:51,840 Speaker 1: hanging out with us and and sharing your story. No problem, 294 00:15:51,920 --> 00:15:57,240 Speaker 1: thank you for interview. It has been real cool. Humans 295 00:15:57,240 --> 00:16:06,680 Speaker 1: growing stuff will be right back after a short I've 296 00:16:06,680 --> 00:16:09,320 Speaker 1: been thinking a lot about what Kamal said about how 297 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:12,320 Speaker 1: the resources are there to grow our own food and 298 00:16:12,640 --> 00:16:16,360 Speaker 1: become independent of the food distribution system. It made me 299 00:16:16,400 --> 00:16:19,360 Speaker 1: think of the Bronx green Up, the community gardens here 300 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:22,680 Speaker 1: in New York, where sometimes people grow so much food 301 00:16:23,040 --> 00:16:25,520 Speaker 1: they end up sharing it with their friends or, in 302 00:16:25,640 --> 00:16:29,080 Speaker 1: one man's case, even mailing the harvest to his relatives 303 00:16:29,080 --> 00:16:31,680 Speaker 1: in Puerto Rico, and I thought about Shelley from the 304 00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:36,400 Speaker 1: Highland Community Gardens to where the organization takes saplings and 305 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:40,000 Speaker 1: plants them in neighbor's backyards so families can cultivate their 306 00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:43,840 Speaker 1: own veggies. It's a service they offer to combat food deserts. 307 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:48,320 Speaker 1: But Gary Oppenheimer, the founder of Ample Harvest dot org, 308 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:51,720 Speaker 1: has figured out another way to help. What if there 309 00:16:51,800 --> 00:16:54,560 Speaker 1: was a better way to share all the extra food 310 00:16:54,600 --> 00:16:57,280 Speaker 1: we end up growing. What if we could take all 311 00:16:57,320 --> 00:17:01,840 Speaker 1: the extra produce that's farmed and connect American gardeners the 312 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:06,720 Speaker 1: local food pantries in need. It's an incredible idea and 313 00:17:06,840 --> 00:17:13,879 Speaker 1: I wanted to hear more, so we gave him a call. Hey, Gary, 314 00:17:13,880 --> 00:17:16,239 Speaker 1: how's it going? I am well man, how are you 315 00:17:16,600 --> 00:17:19,200 Speaker 1: doing super well? And it's really nice to be chatting. 316 00:17:19,359 --> 00:17:23,040 Speaker 1: So I want to hear all about how you started 317 00:17:23,200 --> 00:17:26,520 Speaker 1: apple harvest Dot Oregon and to get your backstory a 318 00:17:26,560 --> 00:17:30,960 Speaker 1: little bit. Um. I went to college, studied psychology and 319 00:17:31,080 --> 00:17:33,600 Speaker 1: decided when I was done with school that I should 320 00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:37,520 Speaker 1: never be psychologist, which my wife bully agrees with. And 321 00:17:38,040 --> 00:17:43,320 Speaker 1: fast forward to nineteen. We buy a house in northern 322 00:17:43,400 --> 00:17:46,879 Speaker 1: New Jersey and a large piece of property, and I 323 00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:49,399 Speaker 1: decided that I had all this time, I should know 324 00:17:49,400 --> 00:17:52,560 Speaker 1: how to garden, so I became a master gardener. I 325 00:17:52,600 --> 00:17:56,360 Speaker 1: was successfully, as it turns out, like millions of other gardeners, 326 00:17:56,400 --> 00:17:58,720 Speaker 1: growing more food than I could use or preserve or 327 00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:01,840 Speaker 1: share with friends. I started looking around to see where 328 00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:03,760 Speaker 1: I could donate, and I found a battered woman shelter 329 00:18:03,840 --> 00:18:06,280 Speaker 1: in my town, and I took the food there. The 330 00:18:06,359 --> 00:18:08,640 Speaker 1: woman who accepted the food, she said, thank you. Now 331 00:18:08,640 --> 00:18:11,560 Speaker 1: we can have fresh food, And that was a weird thing. 332 00:18:11,640 --> 00:18:15,320 Speaker 1: I remember walking away hearing. Around the same time, I 333 00:18:15,320 --> 00:18:18,040 Speaker 1: was asked to take over the management of my town's 334 00:18:18,119 --> 00:18:21,240 Speaker 1: community garden, and I did at the end of the 335 00:18:21,320 --> 00:18:23,400 Speaker 1: prior growing season. When I first met with the people 336 00:18:23,400 --> 00:18:26,320 Speaker 1: in the garden, one of the people said to me 337 00:18:26,760 --> 00:18:31,000 Speaker 1: that she was deeply concerned because the at the end 338 00:18:31,040 --> 00:18:32,679 Speaker 1: of the growing season, there's a lot of food being 339 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:35,240 Speaker 1: left over in the garden. People were bored, overwhelmed, went 340 00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:37,720 Speaker 1: on vacation. She said, I don't want to see that 341 00:18:37,760 --> 00:18:40,640 Speaker 1: food go to waste. And I said, well, if we're 342 00:18:40,640 --> 00:18:42,600 Speaker 1: gonna have an ample harvest, the least we could do 343 00:18:42,640 --> 00:18:44,360 Speaker 1: is get it to hungry people. Now, I had never 344 00:18:44,400 --> 00:18:46,640 Speaker 1: said the for example, harvest in my life. I've never 345 00:18:46,840 --> 00:18:49,520 Speaker 1: those two words, that had never come together. They loved 346 00:18:49,560 --> 00:18:52,560 Speaker 1: that idea. We set about setting up a program in 347 00:18:52,560 --> 00:18:55,159 Speaker 1: this community garden to do that very thing, and in 348 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:59,280 Speaker 1: the process I discovered that when I went on to Google, 349 00:19:00,040 --> 00:19:02,680 Speaker 1: Google said the nearest food program to me was in Morristown, 350 00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:07,160 Speaker 1: New Jerseys, away, which I knew was wrong, and It's 351 00:19:07,200 --> 00:19:11,800 Speaker 1: suddenly dawned on me that the food problem we were 352 00:19:11,920 --> 00:19:18,159 Speaker 1: experiencing wasn't about the food, it was about information. I 353 00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:21,960 Speaker 1: had been misinformed, as we all have been, that you 354 00:19:22,000 --> 00:19:25,639 Speaker 1: weren't allowed to donate food to a food pantry. That 355 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:29,919 Speaker 1: you will all heard the mantra at food drives of jars, cans, boxes, 356 00:19:29,960 --> 00:19:32,400 Speaker 1: but no fresh food. We were told you can't do that. 357 00:19:33,320 --> 00:19:36,920 Speaker 1: What I realized this was fundamentally a problem of misinformation 358 00:19:37,040 --> 00:19:40,679 Speaker 1: and missing information. The misinformation you're not allowed to donate 359 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:44,000 Speaker 1: the food. The missing information was too word to donate it, 360 00:19:44,400 --> 00:19:46,440 Speaker 1: and the optimum day of the weekend time at which 361 00:19:46,520 --> 00:19:48,840 Speaker 1: to do it, because if you timed it just right, 362 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:51,760 Speaker 1: the food pantry did not need to refrigerate your food, 363 00:19:51,800 --> 00:19:54,119 Speaker 1: because the food could be donated just before the hungry 364 00:19:54,160 --> 00:19:57,199 Speaker 1: families take it home. I then got two volunteers to 365 00:19:57,240 --> 00:19:59,879 Speaker 1: help me, and over the deck to nine weeks, we 366 00:20:00,119 --> 00:20:04,240 Speaker 1: built what is today ample harvest dot org. The idea 367 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:08,640 Speaker 1: was to create a massive public awareness campaign helping millions 368 00:20:08,640 --> 00:20:11,280 Speaker 1: and millions of gardeners learned that they can donate food, 369 00:20:11,359 --> 00:20:14,720 Speaker 1: and to build an optimized search engine of America's food 370 00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:17,920 Speaker 1: pantries and for the pantry to guide the gardener to 371 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:20,440 Speaker 1: the day of the week and time of day that's 372 00:20:20,480 --> 00:20:23,760 Speaker 1: best for donation. That was launched in May of two 373 00:20:23,800 --> 00:20:27,800 Speaker 1: thousand nine. Here we are now in October of twenty 374 00:20:27,880 --> 00:20:32,280 Speaker 1: twenty and nearly nine thousand food pantries, about a quarter 375 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:36,000 Speaker 1: of all the food pantries in America in communities in 376 00:20:36,080 --> 00:20:39,080 Speaker 1: all fifty states are now a part of ample harvest 377 00:20:39,119 --> 00:20:42,879 Speaker 1: dot org. And I should tell you one big important number. 378 00:20:43,440 --> 00:20:47,760 Speaker 1: Pre COVID, the National Guarding Association said that America had 379 00:20:47,840 --> 00:20:52,440 Speaker 1: forty two million gardeners of all households. Now in these 380 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:57,680 Speaker 1: COVID years, it's skyrocket at the sixty two million gardeners. 381 00:20:57,720 --> 00:21:00,920 Speaker 1: Sixty two million people in this country grow food, not 382 00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:03,320 Speaker 1: like a farmer to make money, but for their own 383 00:21:03,359 --> 00:21:08,400 Speaker 1: pleasure and enjoyment. And that's our target population. And that's 384 00:21:08,400 --> 00:21:11,800 Speaker 1: just since COVID. Well, the the from the jump of 385 00:21:11,840 --> 00:21:14,639 Speaker 1: forty two to sixty two million is just since COVID, correct. 386 00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:17,600 Speaker 1: And part of that, when you think about it, is 387 00:21:17,720 --> 00:21:19,919 Speaker 1: if you're no longer commuting to work, if you're working 388 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:23,720 Speaker 1: from home, for example, you have time to garden. And 389 00:21:24,119 --> 00:21:26,840 Speaker 1: most people once they start, really enjoy it and don't stop. 390 00:21:27,480 --> 00:21:29,879 Speaker 1: You know you were telling me before before the show 391 00:21:29,960 --> 00:21:33,760 Speaker 1: that that you had actually um donated in a vast 392 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:36,879 Speaker 1: amount of food from your own garden. How much did 393 00:21:36,880 --> 00:21:40,280 Speaker 1: you donate again? About two hundred and fifty two pounds, 394 00:21:40,359 --> 00:21:44,760 Speaker 1: give or take, which is amazing. That's like five times 395 00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:48,720 Speaker 1: the size of my seven year old, which is impressive. 396 00:21:49,520 --> 00:21:52,760 Speaker 1: Let me tell you something, um, pre covid our data 397 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:58,560 Speaker 1: show that America's gardeners grew eleven plus billion pounds more 398 00:21:58,600 --> 00:22:01,000 Speaker 1: food than they could use or pres over share with friends. 399 00:22:02,280 --> 00:22:07,320 Speaker 1: If all that food, if all of that food we're donated, 400 00:22:07,359 --> 00:22:09,800 Speaker 1: that would feed twenty eight million people a year. And 401 00:22:09,880 --> 00:22:12,800 Speaker 1: so how many how many people estimated? Do you do 402 00:22:12,840 --> 00:22:15,960 Speaker 1: you think ample harvest dot org is is feeding or 403 00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:18,639 Speaker 1: helping to feed right now, we're not really feeding people. 404 00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:22,840 Speaker 1: I'd rather say we're nourishing people because food pantries do 405 00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:25,600 Speaker 1: their best to feed people, but they're getting whether it's 406 00:22:25,640 --> 00:22:29,159 Speaker 1: food donated or it is food that they acquire, but 407 00:22:29,200 --> 00:22:33,280 Speaker 1: it's all processed food. It certainly feeds you, but it's 408 00:22:33,320 --> 00:22:37,240 Speaker 1: not fresh food. Right now, with this country needs more 409 00:22:37,280 --> 00:22:43,159 Speaker 1: than anything else, is nourishing healthy fresh food. With ample 410 00:22:43,200 --> 00:22:46,880 Speaker 1: harvest dot org, we don't touch the food. We are 411 00:22:47,119 --> 00:22:51,160 Speaker 1: enabling the gardeners across America to learn that they can 412 00:22:51,200 --> 00:22:54,240 Speaker 1: donate food and then to donate the food. We are 413 00:22:54,320 --> 00:22:58,960 Speaker 1: orchestrating a wholesale change. We also know that two thirds 414 00:22:58,960 --> 00:23:01,080 Speaker 1: of gardeners, once know they can don't they will actually 415 00:23:01,119 --> 00:23:03,159 Speaker 1: expand the size of their garden if they have the 416 00:23:03,200 --> 00:23:06,920 Speaker 1: space to actually donate more food. Do you think that 417 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:10,800 Speaker 1: when people show up to these food pantries and are 418 00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:15,840 Speaker 1: receiving fresh foods that down the line they start thinking 419 00:23:15,840 --> 00:23:20,520 Speaker 1: about growing them themselves. I don't know. I hope they do. 420 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:24,359 Speaker 1: What I do know is that when food, fresh food 421 00:23:24,400 --> 00:23:27,639 Speaker 1: is donated to a food pantry, when a hungry family 422 00:23:27,720 --> 00:23:30,600 Speaker 1: comes in and I've been I've been in food pantries 423 00:23:30,640 --> 00:23:32,359 Speaker 1: many times across the country, and I try to be 424 00:23:32,359 --> 00:23:34,720 Speaker 1: a fly on the wall in the corner, just watching 425 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:38,800 Speaker 1: what's going on. When this fresh food there, that's the 426 00:23:38,840 --> 00:23:41,080 Speaker 1: first table that the people go to because when they 427 00:23:41,080 --> 00:23:44,159 Speaker 1: see the tomatoes, the zucchini, this squash, what have you, 428 00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:47,960 Speaker 1: they know what really value that brings to the nutrition 429 00:23:47,960 --> 00:23:50,080 Speaker 1: of the family, and they get that food. You know what. 430 00:23:50,200 --> 00:23:52,280 Speaker 1: One of the things I've been curious too is like 431 00:23:52,359 --> 00:23:55,320 Speaker 1: as you stand from a distance as this conductor of 432 00:23:55,400 --> 00:23:59,000 Speaker 1: this incredible service and organization. How much do you get 433 00:23:59,040 --> 00:24:00,720 Speaker 1: to be a fly on the well? What sort of 434 00:24:00,760 --> 00:24:04,800 Speaker 1: experiences have you seen uh and witnessed from when you 435 00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:08,520 Speaker 1: go into these places. Routinely we get phone calls and 436 00:24:08,560 --> 00:24:10,960 Speaker 1: we get emails from people struggling to put food on 437 00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:14,480 Speaker 1: the table, and we do our best. We we we 438 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:16,920 Speaker 1: we direct them to the United Way, we direct them 439 00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:19,239 Speaker 1: to Why Hunger where they can get help. But I 440 00:24:19,280 --> 00:24:24,480 Speaker 1: get to hear firsthanded difficulty that people have. Back in thirteen, 441 00:24:25,040 --> 00:24:28,480 Speaker 1: I get an email from a woman who says, I'm 442 00:24:28,520 --> 00:24:31,600 Speaker 1: having a great deal of difficulty putting food on the table. 443 00:24:31,840 --> 00:24:33,920 Speaker 1: I worked, my husband's not able to work, my kids 444 00:24:33,920 --> 00:24:36,920 Speaker 1: are hungry. Can you help us? That's one of many 445 00:24:36,960 --> 00:24:39,320 Speaker 1: types of letters and stuff that come in like that. 446 00:24:39,359 --> 00:24:44,080 Speaker 1: But this woman was active due to US Navy. Wow, 447 00:24:44,359 --> 00:24:47,280 Speaker 1: we had a member of the military struggling to put 448 00:24:47,320 --> 00:24:50,440 Speaker 1: food on the table. I have a hard time talking 449 00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:54,760 Speaker 1: about it even today. I also, on the other side, 450 00:24:55,000 --> 00:24:59,440 Speaker 1: routinely get emails from people about I'm so glad I 451 00:24:59,560 --> 00:25:01,399 Speaker 1: found you, and I'm so glad I heard about you. 452 00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:04,320 Speaker 1: I got an email from a guy in the Southwest 453 00:25:04,359 --> 00:25:06,600 Speaker 1: who said he was so grateful to hear about ample 454 00:25:06,640 --> 00:25:09,919 Speaker 1: harvest dot org. The prior year he had thrown away 455 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:15,520 Speaker 1: eight gallon drum of grapefruit from trees on his property. Wow, 456 00:25:16,400 --> 00:25:19,399 Speaker 1: the opportunity is staggering. And it doesn't have to be 457 00:25:19,440 --> 00:25:21,960 Speaker 1: a garden who has a truckload of food you can 458 00:25:22,040 --> 00:25:24,560 Speaker 1: walk in with. You know, a handful of carrots, are 459 00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:28,119 Speaker 1: a handful of parsley, or boxes and cartons, whatever it is. 460 00:25:28,160 --> 00:25:30,720 Speaker 1: It's not important how much the gardener is donating. It's 461 00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:33,959 Speaker 1: that the food doesn't go to waste. And by the way, 462 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:36,240 Speaker 1: I should point out that since food waste is a 463 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:41,200 Speaker 1: critical contributed to climate change, the environmental and climate change 464 00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:44,960 Speaker 1: benefits of this program are huge. Not only is climate 465 00:25:45,040 --> 00:25:48,080 Speaker 1: change reduced, but so is the waste stream. So the 466 00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:51,199 Speaker 1: environment is better, climate change is reduced, the community in 467 00:25:51,200 --> 00:25:53,880 Speaker 1: the country are healthier. This is a win win win 468 00:25:54,480 --> 00:25:57,440 Speaker 1: all the way around. And by the way, the gardeners 469 00:25:58,240 --> 00:26:00,600 Speaker 1: can get a tax deduction for the donor in the food. 470 00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:02,800 Speaker 1: But we know from our studies but the majority don't care. 471 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:05,760 Speaker 1: They just want to be doing the right thing. So, Gary, 472 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:09,600 Speaker 1: what kind of work are you doing with community gardens? Specifically, 473 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:12,600 Speaker 1: we have a program if you go to Ample Harvested 474 00:26:12,640 --> 00:26:15,399 Speaker 1: Dog Slash Community Garden that we've had a program to 475 00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:20,119 Speaker 1: help community gardens learn about donating. My belief has always 476 00:26:20,119 --> 00:26:23,960 Speaker 1: been that community gardens are important because there's a good 477 00:26:23,960 --> 00:26:26,840 Speaker 1: amount of food there. But the real pressing need for 478 00:26:26,960 --> 00:26:31,080 Speaker 1: us is the individual gardener, the person who's working in 479 00:26:31,119 --> 00:26:36,120 Speaker 1: their own backyard. They don't subscribe to gardening magazines, they're 480 00:26:36,160 --> 00:26:39,000 Speaker 1: not on guardening website. They just they've always known how 481 00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:41,240 Speaker 1: to grow food. They learned it from their parents or whatever. 482 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:43,320 Speaker 1: But nobody has ever gotten to them and said, by 483 00:26:43,359 --> 00:26:46,440 Speaker 1: the way, you can donate that surplus food. Gary, thank 484 00:26:46,480 --> 00:26:48,520 Speaker 1: you so much. It's it's been such a pleasure of 485 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:50,639 Speaker 1: chatting with you. Thank you. It's a pleasure. Thank you 486 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:56,960 Speaker 1: very much. Sankov and Ample harvest dot Org aren't the 487 00:26:56,960 --> 00:27:00,600 Speaker 1: only organizations of their kind working so hard to supply 488 00:27:00,720 --> 00:27:04,560 Speaker 1: pantries and people in need. But what about self reliance 489 00:27:04,600 --> 00:27:07,480 Speaker 1: and this idea of growing your own One of the 490 00:27:07,520 --> 00:27:09,919 Speaker 1: things we've heard over and over on this program is 491 00:27:09,920 --> 00:27:12,119 Speaker 1: that it doesn't take that much room to grow what 492 00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:16,280 Speaker 1: you need, especially if you're creative. The phenomena is called 493 00:27:16,359 --> 00:27:20,159 Speaker 1: micro gardening, and it's exactly what it sounds like. The 494 00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:24,199 Speaker 1: UN Food and Agriculture Organization describes micro growing as the 495 00:27:24,280 --> 00:27:28,959 Speaker 1: intensive cultivation of a wide range of vegetables, roots, tubers, 496 00:27:28,960 --> 00:27:35,640 Speaker 1: and herbs, all in small spaces, so think about like balconies, patios, rooftops, 497 00:27:35,680 --> 00:27:38,000 Speaker 1: and the u N is huge fans of this. In fact, 498 00:27:38,000 --> 00:27:40,200 Speaker 1: the f EO thinks it could be the best answer 499 00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:45,000 Speaker 1: to providing food and nutrition security to low income households 500 00:27:45,040 --> 00:27:48,760 Speaker 1: because it doesn't require a backyard. Most micro growing happens 501 00:27:48,760 --> 00:27:52,479 Speaker 1: in small wooden boxes or stacked garden boxes. You can 502 00:27:52,480 --> 00:27:55,159 Speaker 1: do it all in an area of about ten square feet. 503 00:27:55,680 --> 00:27:58,160 Speaker 1: Of course, when you're micro gardening, you've got to think 504 00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:00,680 Speaker 1: about how to use the space efficiently, and there are 505 00:28:00,840 --> 00:28:04,080 Speaker 1: lots of options. If you listen to our first episode 506 00:28:04,119 --> 00:28:06,960 Speaker 1: where we talked to Mr Plant Geek Michael Perry, he 507 00:28:07,040 --> 00:28:10,560 Speaker 1: talked about these amazing plants that actually grow vegetables on 508 00:28:10,720 --> 00:28:14,000 Speaker 1: top of one another. Well, egg and chips plant is 509 00:28:14,040 --> 00:28:17,399 Speaker 1: basically all one plant which is grafted in the middle, 510 00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:21,040 Speaker 1: so it grows as one and it's an eggplant, a 511 00:28:21,200 --> 00:28:23,879 Speaker 1: k a magine on the top and a potato on 512 00:28:23,920 --> 00:28:27,400 Speaker 1: the bottom. So hence the egg and chips There's also 513 00:28:27,720 --> 00:28:31,919 Speaker 1: another plant in that series, which is the tomotato, and 514 00:28:32,080 --> 00:28:35,240 Speaker 1: that is tomatoes on the top and potatoes on the bottom, 515 00:28:35,240 --> 00:28:38,880 Speaker 1: and that was actually marketed as ketchup and fries plant 516 00:28:38,960 --> 00:28:41,080 Speaker 1: in the US. This is something that used to be 517 00:28:41,120 --> 00:28:43,680 Speaker 1: done during the war in order to make the use 518 00:28:43,760 --> 00:28:50,000 Speaker 1: of space in limited spacing gardens and on allotments. Plants 519 00:28:50,040 --> 00:28:53,040 Speaker 1: like these are great space savers and help your garden 520 00:28:53,080 --> 00:28:56,960 Speaker 1: grow more efficiently. With solutions like microgardening your own food. 521 00:28:57,320 --> 00:29:01,240 Speaker 1: Suddenly people have some agency and when you're not hungry, 522 00:29:01,680 --> 00:29:03,960 Speaker 1: it's so much easier to fight for the things you need. 523 00:29:04,760 --> 00:29:08,320 Speaker 1: It's not something I thought about, but Naima Penniman from 524 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:13,680 Speaker 1: so Fire Farms, she put it beautifully, just what's possible 525 00:29:13,760 --> 00:29:17,760 Speaker 1: when you have food at your fingertips. I'm curious, you 526 00:29:17,760 --> 00:29:20,920 Speaker 1: know you use the phrase food apartheid. I'm wondering if 527 00:29:20,960 --> 00:29:23,320 Speaker 1: you could sort of define that for our audience. Yes, 528 00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:28,920 Speaker 1: the government designates food desert areas. We put far using 529 00:29:28,920 --> 00:29:33,760 Speaker 1: this term food apartib because a desert is a natural phenomenon, 530 00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:38,720 Speaker 1: and we believe the system that has created food opulence 531 00:29:38,840 --> 00:29:43,560 Speaker 1: for some and extreme food scarcity for others is there's 532 00:29:43,600 --> 00:29:46,280 Speaker 1: nothing natural about that that's a man made condition that 533 00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:49,400 Speaker 1: we have a responsibility to to shift. One of the 534 00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:52,960 Speaker 1: lines that you said that really struck me was to 535 00:29:53,160 --> 00:29:56,320 Speaker 1: free ourselves, we must feed ourselves. Can you talk a 536 00:29:56,360 --> 00:29:59,880 Speaker 1: little bit about that. Yeah, So to free us out 537 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:04,640 Speaker 1: as we must feed ourselves is having determination over something 538 00:30:04,680 --> 00:30:07,080 Speaker 1: as basic as the means of our survival through the 539 00:30:07,120 --> 00:30:10,720 Speaker 1: food we consume every day, is a really critical part 540 00:30:10,880 --> 00:30:17,120 Speaker 1: of our liberation as people's And Kenny Luhimer, who started 541 00:30:17,160 --> 00:30:21,840 Speaker 1: Freedom Farms and Sunflower County, Mississippi, said, if you have 542 00:30:22,160 --> 00:30:25,480 Speaker 1: five courts of greens and gumbo soup can for the winter, 543 00:30:26,040 --> 00:30:28,120 Speaker 1: no one can push you around or tell you what 544 00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:33,320 Speaker 1: to do. She recognized that who controls the food controls 545 00:30:33,360 --> 00:30:37,800 Speaker 1: the people, and that as civil rights organizers organizing the 546 00:30:37,840 --> 00:30:40,000 Speaker 1: South at that time, if you did not control the 547 00:30:40,040 --> 00:30:44,440 Speaker 1: means of your survival, you would come groveling, putting down 548 00:30:44,720 --> 00:30:49,400 Speaker 1: your voting ballot, you know, putting down your protest signs, 549 00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:51,480 Speaker 1: and come begging for food because that is something we 550 00:30:51,520 --> 00:30:54,520 Speaker 1: all fundamentally need for ourselves and our family. So there's 551 00:30:54,560 --> 00:30:59,480 Speaker 1: this connection that is so relevant today too, And I 552 00:30:59,560 --> 00:31:02,760 Speaker 1: feel as especially in the midst of this pandemic we 553 00:31:02,760 --> 00:31:06,520 Speaker 1: found ourselves in where the cracks and the food system 554 00:31:06,560 --> 00:31:10,960 Speaker 1: are laid bare, and the food and security that already 555 00:31:11,000 --> 00:31:16,240 Speaker 1: existed is heightened and made even more extreme. I feel 556 00:31:16,320 --> 00:31:19,719 Speaker 1: that also in this pandemic moment is kind of a 557 00:31:19,720 --> 00:31:24,040 Speaker 1: wake up caller reckoning of the importance of reclaiming that 558 00:31:24,600 --> 00:31:28,560 Speaker 1: for ourselves, building more community self determination and food sovereignty. 559 00:31:31,040 --> 00:31:33,440 Speaker 1: So how do we combat this notion of food apartheid 560 00:31:33,560 --> 00:31:37,880 Speaker 1: and give people their agency back. It's like Naima said, 561 00:31:38,240 --> 00:31:41,560 Speaker 1: we teach them to grow by empowering people to start 562 00:31:41,560 --> 00:31:44,280 Speaker 1: their own gardens. It gives them the tools to fight 563 00:31:44,280 --> 00:31:50,800 Speaker 1: against hunger and malnourishment, because self preservation begins with self reliance. 564 00:31:54,280 --> 00:31:57,360 Speaker 1: The truth is, I don't think about food security that much. 565 00:31:58,280 --> 00:32:01,320 Speaker 1: We give money to food banks, my wife cooks meals 566 00:32:01,320 --> 00:32:04,200 Speaker 1: and drops them off to a center close by. It's 567 00:32:04,200 --> 00:32:07,040 Speaker 1: a small part of our lives, but not one that 568 00:32:07,080 --> 00:32:11,080 Speaker 1: occupies much space in our brains. But this year a 569 00:32:11,160 --> 00:32:15,120 Speaker 1: few things came into focus. During the start of the pandemic, 570 00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:19,000 Speaker 1: when grocery stores were overwhelmed and food delivery services were 571 00:32:19,000 --> 00:32:22,320 Speaker 1: taking a few weeks to deliver food, we started meal 572 00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:25,600 Speaker 1: planning and rationing in a way that we never had before. 573 00:32:26,720 --> 00:32:29,880 Speaker 1: We started thinking about food is a scarcity, something we've 574 00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:33,280 Speaker 1: been lucky enough never to do before, and it made 575 00:32:33,360 --> 00:32:37,920 Speaker 1: us genuinely worry for others. I worked on this show 576 00:32:37,960 --> 00:32:41,160 Speaker 1: earlier this year where we reported on the Minnesota experiment, 577 00:32:41,920 --> 00:32:44,880 Speaker 1: which was new to me. It's this experiment that was 578 00:32:44,920 --> 00:32:48,120 Speaker 1: conducted during the tail end of World War Two, and 579 00:32:48,120 --> 00:32:50,360 Speaker 1: it was one of the first studies on what famine 580 00:32:50,360 --> 00:32:53,720 Speaker 1: and hunger can do to bodies, something that hadn't been 581 00:32:53,760 --> 00:32:57,360 Speaker 1: investigated before. The study focused on men in their twenties, 582 00:32:57,760 --> 00:33:02,000 Speaker 1: people who were hail and hardy and sweet temperament. But 583 00:33:02,080 --> 00:33:08,400 Speaker 1: one scientists started restricting the food, the subject's behavior changed drastically. Suddenly, 584 00:33:08,440 --> 00:33:13,120 Speaker 1: they became irritated and impatient when service was slow. They 585 00:33:13,160 --> 00:33:16,240 Speaker 1: were possessive over their food. They hunched over their trays 586 00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:18,959 Speaker 1: and use their arms to box others out and protect 587 00:33:19,040 --> 00:33:23,120 Speaker 1: their meals. They started using a lot more salt, and 588 00:33:23,160 --> 00:33:26,840 Speaker 1: fairly soon the food and security made them paranoid and aggressive, 589 00:33:27,520 --> 00:33:31,200 Speaker 1: and their bodies began to ache. Their knees and feet swelled. 590 00:33:31,200 --> 00:33:33,640 Speaker 1: They didn't have the energy or motivation to do little 591 00:33:33,680 --> 00:33:36,480 Speaker 1: things like make their beds, or take showers or go 592 00:33:36,640 --> 00:33:40,680 Speaker 1: to classes. It's incredible to see what happens to a 593 00:33:40,680 --> 00:33:44,520 Speaker 1: population when you take away the consistent access to meals. 594 00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:48,320 Speaker 1: How so much of what drives you and feels like 595 00:33:48,320 --> 00:33:52,280 Speaker 1: a hallmark of your personality evaporates when there's no food 596 00:33:52,320 --> 00:33:56,000 Speaker 1: on the table. I'm not saying this is one to one, 597 00:33:56,080 --> 00:33:58,640 Speaker 1: but if I can get angry when I skip a meal, 598 00:33:59,640 --> 00:34:01,160 Speaker 1: what's an And for the kids who have to wait 599 00:34:01,200 --> 00:34:04,160 Speaker 1: an entire weekend to get access to a school breakfast 600 00:34:04,240 --> 00:34:07,080 Speaker 1: or lunch, but when the only things they can put 601 00:34:07,120 --> 00:34:10,000 Speaker 1: into their body is the fast food and food from 602 00:34:10,000 --> 00:34:13,600 Speaker 1: a corner store that's available. I was reading this article 603 00:34:13,640 --> 00:34:17,160 Speaker 1: in the Journal of Sustainable Development, and it points out 604 00:34:17,360 --> 00:34:20,279 Speaker 1: in a recent study by the University of Minnesota, the 605 00:34:20,400 --> 00:34:26,600 Speaker 1: highest levels of obesity were observed in census tracts with 606 00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:31,400 Speaker 1: no supermarkets, where the residents only had access to bodega's 607 00:34:31,400 --> 00:34:36,080 Speaker 1: and convenience stores. These are areas where diabetes and cardiac 608 00:34:36,120 --> 00:34:40,040 Speaker 1: problems end up most prolific. But look at what happens 609 00:34:40,080 --> 00:34:44,120 Speaker 1: when you tackle the problems early. A two article in 610 00:34:44,239 --> 00:34:48,359 Speaker 1: Lancet showed that boys and impoverished areas who benefited from 611 00:34:48,360 --> 00:34:51,600 Speaker 1: this randomized nutrition intervention and This was in the first 612 00:34:51,600 --> 00:34:54,760 Speaker 1: two years of their life. They earned wages as adults 613 00:34:55,080 --> 00:34:59,800 Speaker 1: that were fifty higher than non participants. How we eat 614 00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:04,000 Speaker 1: from a young age actually changes our financial prospects in life. 615 00:35:06,120 --> 00:35:09,960 Speaker 1: I don't like politics, but I do believe in humanity 616 00:35:10,160 --> 00:35:13,640 Speaker 1: and science. So I'll leave you with one last study. 617 00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:16,480 Speaker 1: It's an old one, but it's one I think about 618 00:35:16,480 --> 00:35:20,839 Speaker 1: a lot. The marshmallows study. You've probably seen or heard 619 00:35:20,880 --> 00:35:24,160 Speaker 1: about this one. But scientists take a kid and offer 620 00:35:24,239 --> 00:35:27,560 Speaker 1: them this delicious marshmallow. They place it on a table 621 00:35:27,760 --> 00:35:29,839 Speaker 1: and then tell the kid they can have the treat now, 622 00:35:30,600 --> 00:35:33,160 Speaker 1: where if they wait ten minutes and resist the temptation, 623 00:35:33,680 --> 00:35:37,920 Speaker 1: they'll get two marshmallows. Then they leave the room, and 624 00:35:37,960 --> 00:35:41,280 Speaker 1: the results are pretty well known. The kids who wait 625 00:35:41,480 --> 00:35:44,080 Speaker 1: all that time for the second marshmallow are better at 626 00:35:44,120 --> 00:35:47,680 Speaker 1: self control, and scientists have said that these kids have 627 00:35:47,840 --> 00:35:51,839 Speaker 1: the grit to become more successful in life. And maybe 628 00:35:51,920 --> 00:35:54,520 Speaker 1: that's true. But what happens if you live in a 629 00:35:54,560 --> 00:35:57,000 Speaker 1: house where you don't know where your next meal is 630 00:35:57,040 --> 00:35:59,840 Speaker 1: coming from. What if you're in a situation where you 631 00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:02,240 Speaker 1: take the food in front of you because you can't 632 00:36:02,280 --> 00:36:06,920 Speaker 1: trust that a second marshmallow actually is coming. What if 633 00:36:06,920 --> 00:36:09,520 Speaker 1: you've been conditioned to grab what you can get to survive. 634 00:36:11,200 --> 00:36:14,640 Speaker 1: But also what if a little education and a little 635 00:36:14,680 --> 00:36:19,319 Speaker 1: support can change that narrative. What if that same kid 636 00:36:19,400 --> 00:36:22,320 Speaker 1: can come into the marshmallow experiment after eating a handful 637 00:36:22,360 --> 00:36:25,560 Speaker 1: of cherry tomatoes, or know that there's a fridge full 638 00:36:25,640 --> 00:36:29,800 Speaker 1: of food waiting for him stuffy grew and canned or pickled, 639 00:36:29,880 --> 00:36:32,560 Speaker 1: or even just food that's waiting for him to pluck 640 00:36:32,600 --> 00:36:36,359 Speaker 1: off a little vine in his kitchen. Because having a 641 00:36:36,400 --> 00:36:41,080 Speaker 1: full belly might not sound that important until you realize 642 00:36:41,080 --> 00:36:44,000 Speaker 1: it is. And what if having a little garden that 643 00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:47,279 Speaker 1: you own that you can harvest is actually guy to 644 00:36:47,280 --> 00:36:59,200 Speaker 1: your ability to change the world. That's it for today's 645 00:36:59,200 --> 00:37:02,200 Speaker 1: episode Don't Again. Whether you're a beginner like me, a 646 00:37:02,280 --> 00:37:06,120 Speaker 1: pro trying something new, or someone in between enjoying your 647 00:37:06,160 --> 00:37:09,960 Speaker 1: backyard garden, there are incredible resources waiting for you on 648 00:37:10,000 --> 00:37:13,040 Speaker 1: the Miracle Grow website. Next time on our show, we'll 649 00:37:13,080 --> 00:37:16,440 Speaker 1: focus on the stunning ecosystem hiding in your backyard and 650 00:37:16,480 --> 00:37:21,000 Speaker 1: the magical relationships that help a garden to flourish. If 651 00:37:21,040 --> 00:37:23,080 Speaker 1: you like what you heard, don't forget to Rain and 652 00:37:23,120 --> 00:37:26,799 Speaker 1: review the show on Apple Podcast. Also, we want to 653 00:37:26,840 --> 00:37:30,520 Speaker 1: hear from you. What are your inspiring plant stories, relatable 654 00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:34,320 Speaker 1: struggles or growing questions. Tag us in your post or 655 00:37:34,360 --> 00:37:37,480 Speaker 1: tweet using the hashtag Humans Growing Stuff, and don't be 656 00:37:37,560 --> 00:37:40,680 Speaker 1: surprised if you hear your story featured on an upcoming episode. 657 00:37:41,280 --> 00:37:44,000 Speaker 1: Humans Growing Stuff is a collaboration from My Heart Radio 658 00:37:44,040 --> 00:37:46,320 Speaker 1: and your friends at Miracle Grow. Our show was written 659 00:37:46,320 --> 00:37:49,200 Speaker 1: and produced by Molly Sosha and me Mongay Chatigler in 660 00:37:49,280 --> 00:37:53,320 Speaker 1: partnership with Ryan Ovadia, Daniel Ainsworth, Hayley Ericson, and Garrett 661 00:37:53,320 --> 00:37:57,440 Speaker 1: Shannon of Banter Until next Time, Thanks so much for listening.