This article originally appeared in the May-June 2004 issue of the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Children.

Fruits, vegetables, and kids

Innovative programs bring fresh produce to kids in low-income communities

By Mahin Ibrahim

When generations of parents and grandparents told kids, “Eat your vegetables,” they knew what researchers have now proved—fruits and vegetables are essential to good health. Eating lots of fruit and vegetables (at least five servings a day) can help keep kids healthy and prevent overweight. Eating fresh produce can even reduce the risk of diseases like cancer, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

But in many low-income neighborhoods, supermarkets have closed and fresh produce is hard to find. To give all kids a chance at good health, a network of organizations has been finding creative ways to bring fresh fruits and vegetables into low-income, urban neighborhoods.

Alameda County Health Department

Produce tutor

The bell chimes to welcome customers to Friendly Market in West Oakland. Owner Mary Kaaid warmly greets them and returns to her work. She’s busy because business has doubled since the Alameda County Health Department helped her convert her store from liquor sales to a grocery selling fresh produce.

Kaaid’s store was a project of the Health Department’s Nutrition Services. Nathan Cheng, a consultant with the county, taught Kaaid how to make selling produce a success. He helped her clean up and rearrange the store, introduced her to working with the Health Department, and showed her where to buy produce early in the morning, says Linda Franklin, director of Nutrition Services.

Before the store re-opened, Nutrition Services staff leafleted the neighborhood to announce the conversion. On No-vember 8, 2003, Friendly Market had its grand re-opening as a small grocery store.

Attracting crowds

“It turned out to be check-cashing day for Social Security checks, so 250 people came in from 10 to 12 in the morning. It was just booming and really remarkable,” says Franklin. “We gave out 225 sample bags of tangerines, carrots, apples and pears” to encourage people to buy.

“If Alameda County didn’t approach us, we would never have done it,” says Kaaid. “Before, we would stock bananas but one case would last 10 days. Since [Nutrition Services] came with their approach, I’m selling four cases a week. It’s bringing in more foot traffic and attracting crowds of people who are more health-conscious.”

Next generation

Meanwhile, says Franklin, the Health Department is also working in eight elementary schools and one middle school to teach kids how to shop for healthy snacks—training future generations to choose fruits and vegetables. The kids visit stores near their school, stores like Friendly Market, and get to pick out healthy snacks for under $1.

Nutrition Services also works with parents to encourage them to find low-cost places where they can buy more produce.

Several other local agencies are also working to promote these corner-store conversions. The West Oakland Food Collaborative will be holding grand openings for four stores in May, and the City of Oakland is working with the Yemeni Grocers Association to increase sales of produce in their stores. Nutrition Services will receive funding for three more years to promote increased opportunities to bring low-cost, healthy foods into low-income neighborhoods.

Farm Fresh Choice

Produce at child care

Crunchy organic apples, ripe kiwis, and a variety of green, leafy vegetables meet the eyes of shoppers buying fresh produce from a stand set up by Farm Fresh Choice (FFC), a nonprofit organization that provides access to fresh fruits and vegetables near schools and child care centers in West and South Berkeley.

FFC offers its members—now 150, with more every month—a special deal: If they agree to purchase produce every week, they are guaranteed cheap prices and organic or pesticide-free produce. People are strongly encouraged to be-come members, but if you can’t afford the fee (which starts at $5), you can still buy.

Established in 2001 by the Berkeley Food Policy Council, FFC’s goal is to promote healthy eating by selling fruits and vegetables, while supporting small, sustainable farms by selling their produce every week.

Farms & neighborhoods

Berkeley Food Policy Council members had “been grappling with ways to provide access in neighborhoods that don’t have fresh foods, [where] grocery stores were closing, and only liquor stores were open,” says Joy Moore, council member and nutrition outreach specialist for Berkeley’s Chronic Dis-ease Prevention Program.

“We wanted to help remind people about where food comes from. Sustaining local agriculture is important for food systems,” adds Karina Serna, FFC program co-coordinator.

In partnership with the Berkeley Public Health Office, six FFC interns also conduct presentations to schools and community members on topics like nutrition, chronic disease prevention, and the local food system.

FFC “really contributes and provides a resource” said Serna. “We come from a community-based perspective and are not a business. FFC has a commitment to sustainable agriculture and people’s food choices.”

CA Food and Justice Coalition

Farms to schools

California Food and Justice Coalition has gone a step further, with statewide policy advocacy as well as support for local programs. The CFJC brings together 65 health, agriculture, environmental, and social justice organizations working to make sure that everyone has access to healthy food. This year they’re focusing on the Farm to School program.

One hundred schools and 20 school districts have adopted Farm to School. This program is “significantly more than introducing a salad bar to schools,” says Sandy Van Houten, food service director for Ventura Unified School District. In the program:

• Schools purchase fruits and vegetables directly from local farmers for school lunches.

• Teachers take produce into the classroom. Kids learn fractions using pieces of melon. In science, they learn about photosynthesis and how plants grow.

• Kids put this information to practice by working in a school garden.

It works. Van Houten says, “One thing I hear from parents, teachers, and the principal is ‘I can’t believe kids now eat vegetables!’”

“This is a win-win situation for kids and farmers,” says Heather Finney, an organizer for CFJC. “It forms a connection between farms and schools and cuts out the middle people.”

Expanding access

To ensure that Farm to School is here to stay, CFJC is working to build a nutrition partnership between the state de-partments of Education and Food and Agriculture. They’re also advocating for state Farm to School grants—the current grant is federal.

And CFJC wants the state to endorse the “Farm to Cafeteria Projects Act” as part of the federal Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act. This would expand the federal program and provide one-time grants to start up Farm to School sites across the country.

“One of the most important things to kids is making choices,” says Van Houten. And when kids learn to eat more fruits and vegetables, “it reinforces making healthy choices and lifelong habits.”

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For more information

• California Food and Justice Coalition, 310-822-5410, www.foodsecurity.org/california

• Farm Fresh Choice, 510-848-1704, farmfreshchoice@ecologycenter.org

• Alameda County Nutrition Services, 510-595-6454

• California Nutrition Network, 916-449-5400, www.dhs.ca.gov/ps/cdic/cpns/network

For more information on the health benefits of eating fruits and vegetables:

• www.5aday.com/html/consumers/healthcolors.php

California Food & Justice Coalition Community Food Security Summit

June 10-11, Los Angeles, www.foodsecurity.org/california

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