Region’s ‘Food shed’ needs work

A UVA class has released the first study of our local food system, which could help address problems like diabetes, obesity, heart disease and hunger in our neighborhoods. The class, called “Community Food Systems,” was offered last spring in the Architecture School’s department of urban and environmental planning, and had students participate in every aspect of a project that gathered data about the region’s “food shed.”
UVA professor Tim Beatley, one of the course’s instructors, says that, while Charlottesville is a progressive community, we’re not in the top five nationally for local, in-season eating (leaders include Madison, Wisconsin, and West Coast communities). “Food miles are increasing,” Beatley says. “There’s already a disconnect between where food is grown and where it is consumed…we’re sending lots of our income outside our city and region.”
Students in the course studied grocery store locations, transportation and food prices to learn more about the food system. The study’s findings were presented at a public meeting at City Hall on May 8, and dozens turned out to a meeting last week to discuss forming a community action group. The findings are also available on the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission’s website (www.tjpdc.org).
The study comes at a time when more people are concerned about what they eat, and where it comes from. At “Farm Food Voices,” a Virginia Independent Consumers and Farmers Association (VICFA) meeting at Western Albemarle High School last week, 300 farmers, producers, community members and activists gathered for expert talks on farmer’s markets, locally pastured meats and family cooking.
Beatley says the study’s reach will be wide: “Every person in every city in every place in the country ought to be able to buy very healthy, locally grown sustainable food at a reasonable price.”—Meg McEvoy