Urban Farming (file under possible solutions but…)

In the past few weeks I have heard more and more about urban farming. It first came to my knowledge about a year ago. It had been presented to me as a means of solving the impending food crisis. At first I thought it was a great idea. But I also realize that it is a band aid solution to a gaping bullet wound. But that does not mean that we should not explore it as a means of at the very least aiding the problem.

I have gone to many sites on the issue such as;

http://www.urbanfarming.org/
http://www.cityfarmer.info/
http://www.urbanagriculture-news.com/
http://www.dott07.com/go/urbanfarming
http://urbanfarm.org/index2.html

This is by no means an exhaustive list. But it represents some of the sites that I have gone to for information on the subject. As I may or may not have explained before ‘truth’ which is elusive can only be arrived at by consulting as many sources as possible on the subject and then drawing your own conclusion.

The basic problem is this how do we allow sustainable growth and still enable vast populations to eat. The urban farming of the future that I have seen is presented as this;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scs2SIeIkkM which is a short news snippet from The Discovery Channel. Again, this is a possible solution but is it the right one. You see the problem is so vast and complex that there may be a million solutions. By problem with this solution is that it does nothing to address the real problem; wanton waste, manufactured scarcity as well as hunger and famine elsewhere in the world. The point of the story is how doe we keep cities fed as we continue to grow and expand our cities. To my point of view this does nothing to address any of the very real issues that I touched on in my previous post about food policy. Does that mean that it should not be explored? Absolutely not.

If you go through the Urban Farming Organization website you will quickly realize that they are very interested in ensuring that the poor and needy get food. This is a beautiful project and I support it whole heartily. If you go to http://www.urbanfarming.org/presentation.htm you will see that they have opened approximately 500 gardens in less than four years. Their goal, stated, is to eradicate hunger worldwide. BEAUTIFUL. But again, you watch it and draw your own conclusions. What makes it so beautiful is the coming together of people to help others. And it is something that WE ALL CAN DO!

Many times (at least a few) I have mentioned that my Mother, giving up lots, chose to move to Africa, in Malawi to provide much needed medical services to people that would otherwise not get any medical services. I commend her for what she and my Stepfather are doing. It touches my heart and soul in so many beautiful ways that sometimes I break down.

When I decided to become a Chef, I knew that I too would have a mission. Not only one which saw me feed people in my restaurant but also people from all over the world. I believe that food and water are BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS and need to be guaranteed. Right now they are not. They are used as weapons. Against people that would literally start a fight to eat even one one hundredth of what we do. My goal is to create an environment which enables me to provide food, food knowledge, food product and service to people all over. Starting of course in my own back yard and then extending that to a much wider, READ GLOBAL, community.

I am going to write more on this subject tomorrow. Unfortunately, I am tired and I need to get my rest so I can continue. Sorry to cut the post short but I feel like I am going to fall flat on my face.

Food for thought? I think so. I will continue this post tomorrow. In the mean time, consider what I am writing about. Ask yourself, what can I do? How can I help? Believe me, it is a lot easier than you think. But it takes all of us, one at a time, to solve this very real issue.

Article 25, Subsection 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states;

“Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.”

It is not merely enough to state that people have these rights.

Thomas Jefferson once wrote; “The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.” 200 years on and we still aren’t getting it right.

Are you dreaming big and inspired? Those dreams and inspiration MAY be the answer that we need.

A la prochaine

SDM