Anyone else find it ironic that they are celebrating Urban Food Production Day in Bangladesh, whereas in the United States it’s National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day?
A friend of mine in Bangladesh sent me this scan of an article from today’s newspaper, at about the same time I was reading through my Google Reader and all the peanut butter blog posts. Not that there’s anything wrong with peanut butter, it was just a striking juxtaposition.
I can’t even imagine spending 45-60% of my income on food. And we complain about how expensive it is to eat healthy?
It’s a good reminder to me that while some of us have a choice to eat nutritious foods, others do not. Whether they are living in a country where the goal is to grow enough food for the year or in a country like the U.S. where un-nutritious, fake “food” is the cheapest route, I do hope to get more involved in organizations that help bring real food to people in need. I work for an international relief and development organization, so my focus is normally overseas, but recently I’ve been convicted that we need to make a difference here, too.
Are you involved in any local food security efforts? Which ones?
This post shared at Fight Back Friday
You are so right about Americans being “spoiled” by sopending a tiny amount of total income on food as compared to most of the world! Maybe the mere fact of food being so cheap has led us to not necessarily consider nutritional-value-per-dollar. The goal of getting us complacent Yanks to reconsider our approach to food is a noble one – you go!
I just submitted an article on Pierce Cedar Creek’s connection to food, with Maribeth Groen’s thought that it suits the organization’s philosophy of wise conservation of resources. Good point there, because maybe we’ve begun to think of “cheap” food as an entitlement, rather than another resource that we can choose to use wisely or not. Text is with with Maribeth for approval right now, but look for it in the April-May issue of Food for Thought…
I look forward to your blog, by the way. It is kind of like PCCI, in a way: a big-picture outlook on everyday issues and how to approach them mindfully. Yay!
One of these years, I think there is a story (“Will Blog for Food”???) on W MI food bloggers and the many perspectives they bring to the discussion of food… You ARE on the list, of course.
Can’t wait for the next issue of FFT! And there are so many W Mi food bloggers, would be a great article. We have a West Michigan blogger meeting every month. So glad you’re enjoying my posts. Hope to see you again soon.
Wish you could have come to the Rapid Growth Speaker Series about local food insecurities. It was just an overview of UCOM, Access, Kids Food Basket, and what’s the name of the Kent County coalition? Anyway… so inspiring to make a difference right here in our own community.