Re-imagining the Food System

A FeelGood/Organic Valley Changemaker Journey

You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change things, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.
Buckminster Fuller

The Existing Model:

The Industrial Food System

Industrial Agriculture:
The Unintended Consequences
Badly depleted soils and water supplies Lost crop diversity Poisoned ecosystems Decreasing human health High greenhouse gas emissions

The New Model:

The Ecological (Local) Food System

The Industrial Food System

Is the new model really new?

70% of the worlds food is produced by the industrial food system

a) True b) False

Answer:
b) False!
There are 3 billion SMALL-SCALE food producers worldwide (including their families) and THEY are the ones producing 70 percent of the world s food. In fact, traditional agriculture has been feeding the world for millennia. Small farmers have nurtured, conserved and brought us the thousands of cultivated species that have enabled humans to adapt to a wide range of environments.

There is a common perception that industrial agriculture feeds the world. The reality is stunningly the opposite.

Per unit area, large-scale industrial farms will always out produce small-scale ecological farms.
a) True b) False

Answer:
b) False!
Large farms tend to plant only one crop because monocultures are the simplest to manage, while small farms are more likely to plant crop mixtures and fill the empty niche spaces with crops instead of weeds. They also tend to combine or rotate crops with livestock, using manure to replenish soil fertility. Such integrated systems produce far more per unit area than monocultures produce.

There is a common perception that small farms are less productive and less efficient than big farms. It is surprising and alarming to realize how deeply these beliefs are rooted and the serious implications they can have in terms of designing wrong policies that can have devastating effects on local economies and communities.

Those born into poverty and hunger are NOT farmers.

a) True b) False

Answer:
b) False!
50% of the more than 1 billion hungry are small scale famers and their families. 20% are landless families that depend of farming. Policies supporting small-scale producers and transferring decision-making power to them on the use and management of resources have a big potential to help create vibrant communities endowed not only with food but also vivid economies, well-being and the possibility to plan for a long-term future.

The fact that increased support to ecological agriculture can substantially increase food production has to be the principal strategy of any move from unsustainable industrial agriculture to a viable, multifaceted small-scale agriculture that can feed future populations. --A Viable Food Future .

In the last 30+ years, the majority of the 50 least developed countries went from being net food EXPORTERS to net food IMPORTERS.
a) True b)False

Answer:
d) True
The majority of the 50 least developed countries and the majority of all developing countries were net food exporters until the 1980s when they became net food importers. Developing countries were forced by global financial institutions to import highly subsidized food from rich countries, and to produce cash crops, such as coffee, tea and flowers, for export. They also required cutting down government spending in areas such as extension services for farmers, ending price guaranties for farmers and consumers, and closing public food storage facilities, as well as cutting down on public expenses for education and health care. The result: Increased poverty and hunger.

The whole paradigm behind our agriculture food system needs to shift.

Two Paradigms, Two Outcomes

Industrial Agriculture Food is :
An industrial process driven by profit and efficiency

Ecological Agriculture Food is :

A biological process that nourishes our bodies, our communities, and our planet

Awareness of food origin is:

Limited, undisclosed, assumed, uninformed, ignored

Awareness of food origin is:

Crucial, personal, openly explored

Disposed food is:

Excessive, frequent, seen as waste

Disposed food is:

Thoughtful, feeds the system, seen as resource

People believe food should :

Be cheap, efficient, mass-produced, available when we want it

People believe food should:

Be abundant, healthy, shared, as close as possible to natural state, enjoyed, eaten in natural cycle

The historical result is:

Persistence of vast inequity, health decline, ecological destruction, dysfunctional relationships

The historical result is:

Vibrant community, vital relationships, increased access, ecological partnership

So, how can FeelGood participate in accelerating the shift to a new food system model for the benefit of EVERYONE?

Source your deli ingredients locally.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/35904048/Tips-for-Locally-Sourcing-Food

Green your deli! Reduce Reuse Recycle Compost

Use your deli as a point of dialogue and education.

Host an Earth Dinner.

An Organic Valley initiative around Earth Week (April 16-20) the purpose of an Earth Dinner is to bring people together to learn, teach, and talk about their relationship to food, farming, and the earth. Look for more info from FeelGood World about this awesome opportunity! http://earthdinner.org/resources/index.html

And as Individuals
Eat Locally Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs) and Farmers Markets are both great ways to support a local food system. Eat Less Meat According to the Union of Concerned Scientists considering land use, and water use and pollution eating less meat is one of the most effective environmental consumer choices. Eat Organic Organic foods reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides that require large amounts of energy to produce, pollute the soil and water, and present real human health impacts. Use Less Refrigeration Home refrigeration accounts for 13% of all energy consumed by our food system. Consider a smaller, more efficient refrigerator and buying smaller quantities of fresh produce more frequently.

Source Materials and Additional Resources

Useful Video Resources

Carolyn Steel: How food shapes our cities http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/carolyn_steel_how_food_shapes_our_cities.html Mark Bittman on what s wrong with what we eat http://www.ted.com/talks/mark_bittman_on_what_s_wrong_with_what_we_eat.html The Story of Food http://vimeo.com/7573579 Michael Pollan Don t buy what you see on TV http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjutojvbsTg&feature=g-vrec&context=G2638ecdRVAAAAAAAAAw Why Eat Local? http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DhaG_Zi6izU Twinkie vs. Carrot http://www.nourishlife.org/videos/twinkie-vs-carrot/ Food Chain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=OmrfrsnWng8 No Free Lunch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4U097wiZGk4 Supermarket Secrets: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=snP40-unO0A Michael Dimock Sustainable Food Systems and Global Poverty http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkmNV0T9_-Y Raj Patel Hungry for Change http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZJAZOPuqKo&NR=1

Ecological Agriculture:
The Value of Small Farms
Diversity: Small farms embody a diversity of ownership, cropping systems, landscapes, culture and traditions. Environmental benefits: Responsible management of soil, water, and wildlife encompassed by small-scale farmers produces significant environmental benefits for society to enjoy. Self-empowerment and community responsibility: Decentralized land ownership produces more equitable economic opportunity for people in rural communities, as well as greater social capital. Places for families: Farms, particularly family farms, can be nurturing places for children to grow and acquire the values of responsibility and hard work, and the skills of farming. Personal connection to food: Through farmers markets, Community Supported Agriculture, and direct marketing strategies of small farmers, people are developing meaningful relationships with the farmers and a connection with food as a product of a farmer s cooperation with nature. Economic foundations: Dispersed farm operations are key to economic vitality.