Courtesy of The Automatic Earth.
G. G. Bain Jewish Farmers Exhibit, East Broadway, NY 1909
Today looks like a good day to do a shout out and promo for our dear friends Kirsten and Serenity in Melbourne, Oz, who were responsible for the impeccable organization of the tour of Australia Nicole and I did in 2012. So we have living proof that they know how to organize something once they pour their hearts into it, which bodes well for the new project they’re busy setting up.
The Open Food Network focuses on building and facilitating an interactive platform to connect farmers and eaters that are dedicated to good, honest and local food, with full transparency. Of course there are many initiatives out there, from farmers markets to organic food stores, but many people still have problems getting access to good food.
Besides, most ‘fresh’ food is bought in giant supermarket chains, transported over large distances, and subject to centralized control, from Monsanto at seed level, ConAgra as super-producer, to WalMart as super-retailer. And we should not want centralized control, especially not of our basic necessities; that has never been a good idea and it never will be. If we can get the Monsanto’s and WalMarts of this world out of our lives, and at the same time improve the quality of our food, that can only be a good thing.
And if that still doesn’t swing it for you, just think of all the local jobs that will be created if we all buy local food as much as we can. Don’t forget that a dollar spent inside your community is worth 3-4 times more than one spent outside of it. And no, WalMart, and the entire supply chain it stands for, is not your community.
The Open Food Network aims to use the internet to provide a way of organizing all this, community by community. Check it out. Here’s their blurb:
