INDY'S WEEKLY ALTERNATIVE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTING ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
A more food-secure Indy
by Angela Herrmann
Grow community in your neighborhood
The beauty of The Growing Community’s innovative approach to food security is that it can be replicated in any neighborhood. Get involved with The Growing Community to find out how it’s done or start something similar where you are. Contact Alan Archibald at a.archibald@sbcglobal.net or Darren Allumier at dallumier@enn.org. Also check out the Coalition for Community Food Security at www.foodsecuriy.org. Meanwhile, you can learn about food systems by checking out Cornell University’s primer at http://foodsys.cce.cornell.edu/primer.html. Also visit Growing Power, www.growingpower.org, to learn more about the youth trainings.
Grow your own food … plant a garden … (become a master gardener)
Not sure where to start in your yard? Befriend a gardener or enroll in a master gardener’s class. Upcoming classes are posted at www.hort.purdue.edu/mg/ and you’ll find information on a junior master gardener’s class. Master gardeners learn the horticultural basics, and grow by sharing and volunteering in their communities.
Join or start a community garden
Contact Purdue Extension to find a community garden near you or start one. All you need is a large piece of ground (and permission to use it). For information on community gardening, visit the American Community Gardening Association Web site at www.communitygarden.org. If you start a community garden, then one of the first things you’ll want to do is get the soil tested. In older neighborhoods, lead sometimes shows up in the soil. Visit the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service Web site for staff contacts at www.ces.purdue.edu/marion/. And master gardeners are always available to volunteer!
And while you’re at it, plant a row for the hungry
A program of the Garden Writers Association, Plant a Row (PAR) allows you to share your abundance with those in need. Simply donate your extra produce to any church or agency that offers food relief in the community … or if you know someone who could use a little extra, pass it on. Inmates at the Indiana Women’s Prison have participated in PAR for several years, donating nearly 1,000 pounds of organically-grown fresh produce over the past three years. Learn more at www.gardenwriters.org/Par/index.html. Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, www.gleaners.org, and Second Helpings, www.secondhelpings.org, will accept your extra produce. Find out how to make donations by visiting their Web sites.
Grow your garden organically
For the safest, healthiest harvests, grow your garden organically and invite beneficial insects. Learn about the intricate relationships between plants, insects and soil. Visit www.gardeningnaturally.org to find out more.
Become a beekeeper
Did you know you can keep bee hives in Indianapolis? Just make sure you talk with your neighbors first! For information, contact Kathleen Prough, state apiary inspector for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Entomology and Plant Pathology at 317-232-4120 or kprough@dnr.state.in.us.
To learn how to keep bees, visit http://indianabeekeepingschool.com/.
Support a farmer
Shop at farmers’ markets or join a CSA. For a list of farmers’ markets, visit the Indiana State Department of Agriculture Web site at www.in.gov/isda/ and follow the Farmers’ Market link. For a list of CSAs, visit the Local Harvest Web site at www.localharvest.org.
… or start a farmers’ market
Are you affiliated with an organization with a large open space, like a church or a community center? If you don’t already have a farmers’ market, then maybe it’s time to start one. Purdue University offers a guide for market masters who want their market to be part of the WIC program, www.ces.purdue.edu/extmedia/EC/EC-741.pdf.
… or become a farmer
As more people begin asking for and buying locally-grown produce, more small-scale farmers will be needed to meet the demand. Often farmers will take on interns or apprentices. Contact farmers near you to find out. Training programs currently available include an internship at Center Valley Organic Farm, www.localharvest.org/farms/M116; a Farm School at Apple Family Farm, www.applefamilyfarm.com/FarmSchool.htm; a list of farmer networks, certification and training in sustainable agriculture, www.ces.purdue.edu/sa/saghrm.html; learn more at the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, http://attra.ncat.org/.
Save your seeds
How many of us actually start our plants from seed … let alone save the seed? People don’t realize that seeds are the beginning of the food chain. Without good seed, we won’t have good food. Heirloom seeds represent diversity that does not exist in our food system because they have not been genetically modified. Watch for Kaye Grimm, who sometimes gives workshops and talks on seed saving techniques, to find out how you can become a seed saver. For more information, contact Grimm at 317-290-6996.
Start a food cooperative
Begin simple, with say, organic free-range eggs or meat. Start with your circle of friends or co-workers. Develop a relationship with a farmer who would then provide the products for you and your group on a regular basis at a mutually agreed upon price. Start with market farmers to find someone who can work with your co-op. Kaye Grimm has been running the Basic Roots Community Organics cooperative since 2005, beginning with five people, and has grown into a subscription service for 45 this year. For more information about cooperatives or to subscribe to Basic Roots, contact Grimm at 317-290-6996.
Enjoy the seasonal bounty
Find easy to use recipes in A Midwest Gardener’s Cookbook, by Indiana writer Marian Towne.
Enjoy the seasonal bounty next winter
Learning to preserve food can be quite rewarding — while it sometimes can take some time and effort, share the workload with your family or a couple of friends, then share a meal or two next February. Purdue Extension offers a list of resources on how to preserve foods in PDF at www.ces.purdue.edu/CES/Dubois/CFS/FoodPresColor.pdf. Also, a book called Putting Food By, by Janet Greene, is a reliable resource.
Open a community kitchen
Most churches and schools have commercial kitchens. What better place to gather and preserve food?
Always vote with your dollars
Every time you buy local, you are helping construct a local food infrastructure that enables more small farmers to provide excellent food that hasn’t traveled across the country from field to table. Think it’s not possible? Visit www.100milediet.org or www.foodroutes.org for some ideas.
Call on city officials to make Indianapolis more food secure
Will the city’s sustainability plan include a provision supporting local food production? During the 1940s, 44 percent of Americans ate locally produced food, while today, that number has fallen off to 1 percent. A number of U.S. city government officials are calling on their citizens to eat locally, thus enhancing food security by reducing their dependence on 1,500-mile meals. One of the most ambitious plans comes from Oakland, Calif. In January 2006, the Oakland City Council approved a plan to produce 30 percent of its food locally. Closer to home, the Bloomington (Ind.) Common Council approved the creation of the Bloomington Commission on Sustainability in May 2005, with foci in economics, environment and (social) equity.