Feeding the world... one community at a time.

Sometimes food insecurity is a hard topic for me to grasp. I come from a very rural community where almost everyone either farms or at least works on a farm. People in my community know how to produce their own food efficiently. Our community is most likely considered as "food insecure" because of "food deserts." The food deserts refer to the lack of access people in our area have to places like grocery stores. People in our community are very spread out because of all the farming land and undeveloped areas so for some, the nearest grocery store is 10+ miles away from their home. What surveys don't take into account is that just because we only have two grocery stores doesn't mean we are food deserts-- we grow the food... a lot of the time we grow our own food.

So yes, sometimes I have a hard time comprehending food insecurity because I'm so used to seeing my rural, agricultural community supply so much food. But the truth is that, even in a small rural community like mine sometimes, there are people who don't have access to food because they can't grow their own, can't reach a store, can't afford to purchase food, etc.

My community combats food insecurity by providing a "community garden." Some farmers from one of the local churches in our area planted a garden in which members of the community can easily and affordably access fresh, healthy and nutritious foods close to where they reside. Personally, I feel like this could work well in less rural communities as well. Maybe if urban areas started and maintained many small lots throughout the city, it could provide more food to more people in need.