By Brooke Smith
February 2, 2010
The WHY team crossed back into Blues country yesterday. We are joining our local partners and over 100 participants at the Delta Fresh Foods Conference here in Cleveland, MS- the heart of the Delta. After months of community organizing, planning and spreading the word, we are all excited to convene this gathering of regional farmers, health workers, funders, non-profit professionals, grassroots organizations and university students and faculty who will begin building a sustainable, community-based solution to the lack of access to fresh, affordable food for Delta residents.
Mississippi has a rich history born of equal parts plenty and hardship. The soil is fertile, the water flows, the crops are bountiful, and music courses through Delta veins. Conversely, largely due to past and current US Agricultural policies and the outsized influence of large-scale agricultural business interests, much of the farmland has been converted to inedible commodity crops, minority and family farmers have been forced from their lands, and the resulting oppression of all kinds continues to keep the rate of poverty and diet-related disease ranking top in the nation.
What can be done? How can residents and supporters empower themselves to change the course of history and become active in the local, national and global outcry for a better, healthier future? That’s exactly what we’re here at the Delta Fresh Foods Conference to find out. We’ll keep you in the loop over the next few days, and we’re certain that the persistent efforts and inspired commitment of the Delta residents holds promise for us all.
For more information and pictures of the Delta Fresh Foods Conference, check back with WHY On the Road.
What can be done? How can residents and supporters empower themselves to change the course of history and become active in the local, national and global outcry for a better, healthier future? That’s exactly what we’re here at the Delta Fresh Foods Conference to find out. We’ll keep you in the loop over the next few days, and we’re certain that the persistent efforts and inspired commitment of the Delta residents holds promise for us all.
For more information and pictures of the Delta Fresh Foods Conference, check back with WHY On the Road.
