Will the Future of Urban Farming be Forged in an Empty Factory?
By Agnes Bridge Walton
In the post-industrial landscape of towns and cities there is a lot of unproductive space—abandoned lots in run-down neighborhoods, empty warehouses and decaying railroad tracks can be found from Oakland to Detroit and most places between them. Such dark, silent expanses blight the urban environment and the inner-city areas that surround them.
Food Justice Label: A promising model for domestic fair trade
By Anisha Hingorani
Consumers are becoming more concerned with where their food comes from, what’s in their food, and who’s behind it. From the recent public outrage over ‘pink slime’ to the success of the Coalition for Immokalee Workers’ “Fair Food” campaigns, consumers are demanding more transparency in the food system.
PBS is putting food forward with this new series starting in April 2012
Food Forward: Urban Agriculture Across America premiers April 5 in Los Angeles @ 10:30PM PT and other major markets across the nation
Guerrilla Grafters
San Francisco, and most cities, prohibits fruit-bearing trees on sidewalks and other public right-of-ways, saying they are health and safety hazards. The fear is that fallen, rotten fruits attract rats and squirrels and cause pedestrians to slip and fall. Many of the urban trees managed by the SF Department of Public Works are ornamental fruit trees such as apple, pear, plum, lemon, and cherry which produce normal leaves and flowers, but small or no fruit.
Report on campaign to label genetically modified ingredients (GMOs) in California
Report from the Organic Consumers Association. March 8, 2012
What we need is 40 acres and a mule (In Oakland, CA USA)
by Brent Walker, Oakland farmer with Max Cadji, of Phat Beets Produce
March 2, 2012
Brent Walker, 31, who grew up on his grandmother’s farm, is asking everyone in the East Bay with large back yards or vacant lots to let Black urban farmers grow produce there to feed inner city neighborhoods that have little access to healthful food. He calls on the community to “put the land back in the hands of farmers.”
"Stop The 'RoundUp!'" Event was a Huge Sucess!
Oakland, CA - March 7, 2012
By Kelly Carlisle, director of Acta Non Verba Youth Urban Farm Project
On Monday, February 27th (2012) Acta Non Verba: Youth Urban Farm Project (ANV), Communities for a Better Environment (CBE), California Food Justice Coalition (CFJC) and Food First (FF) were joined by representatives from Bay Localize, Planting Justice and Phat Beets Produce for an Occupy the Food Supply event at Tassafaronga Community Garden & Youth Urban Farm to plant lavender along one of our perimeter fences.
