San Francisco's Victory Garden
What would you do if there were suddenly a shortage in the food supply? Unfortunately today, the term "food" can be loosely interpreted. So let's assume we're not talking about the packaged food that has a shelf life of 5 years, and is comprised mostly of artificial ingredients. Let's talk about REAL FOOD. The stuff that comes straight from the ground, or the animal (yes we've got carnivores here!) - the REAL FOOD of which, if we're lucky, our processed foods are in some part, comprised.
What if, farm fresh food suddenly was in short supply. What would you do? If you live in San Francisco, there's hope in such a scenario. San Francisco has joined a host of cities across the US, that are trying to assure ongoing healthy food supplies with Victory Gardens 2008.
Victory Gardens 2008 "supports the transition of backyard, front yard, window boxes, rooftop gardens and unused land into organic food production areas". Building on the idea of the Victory Garden programs during the World Wars I and II, the new victory gardens are a fight for urban sustainability. The SF Victory Garden, planted at Civic Center, is unbelievably lush and productive. Kale, chard, tomatoes, lettuces, beans, all are growing in raised beds, carefully tended by a dedicated team of garden volunteers. Harvests will be donated to the SF Food Bank, which tends to provide plenty of processed food, but historically has not been able to provide a reliable supply of organic fresh produce.
Victory Garden indeed. May we become less dependent upon others for our food, and more self-reliant when it comes to taking back the health of our food system, bodies and minds.