Exploring creative methods to contribute to a food secure household and community, using food sovereignty blueprints.
Welcome back!
This is Part II to the Urban Food Sovereignty series. Click here to start with Part I, especially if you want to learn what the difference is between food security and food sovereignty.
Having read Urban Food Sovereignty Part I and the importance of food security and diversity in a rapidly changing world, you might be feeling overwhelmed… not only about how to make a positive impact, but how to strive for it. Well, I have a few creative solutions for you to try! I have listed below various actions that you can take to increase food security not only in your own household, but for your community.
Now let’s get our DIY mojo going.
Learn to cook
This might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of food sovereignty, but learning how to cook plays a huge role! You might have learned to cook from your friends or family, a cooking workshop at a community center, printed cookbooks, online recipe blogs, Youtube videos, or at a cooking class soirée. No matter where or how you developed your cooking skills, I think we can agree that learning to cook is essential.
Knowing how to cook meals also helps to reduce food waste, reduce food costs (especially via food waste reduction), and even help us to make smarter choices for our health, planet and wallet. Come into your week prepared with a plan and meal-prepped foods ready to eat, and your fridge and pantry stocked with the necessary groceries. This way you’ll be able to save on time, money and mostly avoidable food waste.
Plus, having an arsenal of recipes for home-cooked meals will likely improve your health because you’ll be more likely to eat less highly refined or processed foods, unhealthy oils, sugar and salt; prime examples of what we’ll find in many ready-to-eat dinners and take-out or restaurant meals.
If you are trying to change your diet and need additional guidance, check out my article about how to succeed in making dietary changes.
Seed bombs
Don’t panic, I am not talking about real bombs!
Seeds bombs are little balls of soil, seeds and clay that get tossed anywhere where those seeds might have a chance to grow. The seeds typically consist of edible plants and wild flowers (including pollinating flowers popular with local bees). The purpose of “re-wilding” using seed bombs is to encourage greater biodiversity of plants and fauna, and provide greater access to harvesting certain edible or medicinal plants.
Seed bombs are a fun DIY project that you can do on a rainy day. Simply mix any seeds into some potting soil and clay powder in a bowl, and add a bit of water until the mixture is moist but not wet. Roll the mixture in your hands to form a ball, and let the balls dry a little on the outside so that their easier to handle and throw. Aim for fields, vacant lots and other places that look like they need a little extra life and TLC.
Guerrilla grafting
Bit of an odd name, but here’s the explanation! Guerrilla grafting was a term created by urban communities that wanted to improve on food sovereignty right in their own backyard, using trees. Grafting is the process of binding cut branches (or grafts) of fruit or nut-bearing trees and joining them to other trees, whether fruit-bearing or not.
This allows the tree to exchange nutrients to the grafted branches just as it would its own branches, and thus these branches will bear fruit (or nuts). Grafting is common practice in vineyards and orchards.
The reason why the term “guerrilla” is used, is because individuals sometimes graft fruit-bearing branches to trees that are technically on public, government-owned or private land (that is not their own). Plenty of trees exist on public land in towns and cities, but don’t necessarily bear edible fruit. So the idea is this: let’s make more food accessible and free to everyone by growing them on the trees in our own cities!
Victory Gardens
When I was living as a student in Montreal, I learned about Canada’s Victory Gardens. These gardens were developed across Canada during the first and second world wars as a result of necessity. It’s interesting because as of the 1930s, give or take a few years, grocery stores were being introduced and millions were moving to the cities, abandoning the rural life in the hopes of better opportunities.
However, as a result of the lack of food and food goods, a lack of transportation of said goods, and the rising costs of goods at a time when so many were left wanting, people came together in these urban landscapes to grow food once again. Interestingly, it was especially men who took up this “victory gardening” as a new form of urban masculinity during times of great uncertainty and hardship.
Still today, cities such as Montreal feature Victory Gardens across the map. In some cases they are true community gardens, providing free produce in exchange for a few hours of work every week. Other gardens allow you to pay for a small plot of land; enough to grow plenty of produce for your household – for at least a couple of seasons!
Food sovereignty at its finest.
Balcony and vertical gardens
Of course, not everyone has access to private properties or community gardens, and maybe the trees in your cities do not grow food (yet!). If you have a balcony or even a brightly lit room in your apartment that gets sun most of the day, you can absolutely grow food!
It is surprising what some good potting soil and plant food can do.
It’s possible to grow food and herbs during the wintery Canadian months too, but I recommend using a grow lamp for plants because the winter light is not sufficient for growth.
And hey, even if you don’t have the means to purchase things like pots and soil, you can still grow some things – or rather, re-grow them! Check this website out to learn how to re-grow produce you’ve already purchased, such as celery and green onions!
Starting from scratch and need some extra help? Try one of the following DIY urban gardening books:
Container gardening Indoor and vertical gardening Growing a potted garden
Community kitchens, food banks, and communal food pantries
Community kitchens can take on several forms, so here are some examples of where they can be found: a local food bank, a soup kitchen, a by-donation meal kitchen at a university, an immigrant welcome centre, shared group cooking events at a neighbourhood community centre, a potluck amongst friends or coworkers, or even family or friends coming together to cook a meal and share the leftovers amongst the group.
A communal food pantry could be something as small as a little bookshelf filled with canned and dried goods, to a small local shop that runs on donations and volunteers to redistribute donated goods either for free or at a greatly reduced price. These shops are less common, but are starting to gain traction as more people struggle with the rising costs of food and as we try to mitigate the tremendous amount of food waste in developed countries like Canada.
These places provide numerous benefits. They serve to provide food for those that are food insecure, regardless of the circumstances or socioeconomic status or cultural identity. They serve to reduce food waste and help to create a more closed-loop type of system by putting to use food that would otherwise be wasted. They also facilitate a sense of community by having a shared space to help one another in times of need.
Seed saving
It seems that nowadays seed saving is an act of rebellion. Major corporations such as Monsanto have purchased major seed companies such as Seminis in 2005, which at the time provided 40% of the vegetable seeds in the United States and 20% of the vegetable seed sales internationally. Even if you don’t purchase seeds or plants from garden centres, you are likely consuming seeds that were originally sold by Monsanto from the grocery store.
The repercussions in having an international conglomerate control seeds, as well as promoting genetically-modified seeds (GMO), is that seeds will be lower in quality, higher in price, and there will be a less diverse supply of produce. This greatly reduced diversity in our plants leads us to be extremely vulnerable not only to the whims of monopolized pricing, but also to supply and nutrient diversity. You might observe 3-6 varieties of tomatoes at your local grocery, but there are in fact thousands of varieties of tomatoes. This is the opposite of food security, especially given the fragility of food systems which lack diversity. This diminished diversity makes it so that crops are more susceptible to disease, require more fertilizers and pesticides, reduce local biodiversity and damage local environments, and are not as nutrient-dense as the fruits and vegetables that were grown, say, 100 years ago.
What can you do? Purchase organic seeds from small-scale local businesses, and ask your garden centre from whom they purchase their seeds. Alternatively, you can have a go at saving seeds from your own garden! I invite you to check the Seed Savers website for all you could possibly want to know about saving seeds.
Composting
You may have read about how depleted our soils are, both the insignificant amount of top soil that we have left and the greatly reduced minerals and nutrients in our soils, lending to decreased crop yields and also less nutritious produce. Unfortunately, our traditional ways of mono-crop farming using industrial measures have eroded our topsoils 10 times faster than they can be replenished, and we need this top soil to grow 95% of our crops.
If you have even a little bit of space on your property, I encourage you to start a compost bin or container. There are many types of compost containers and methods, and you can explore whichever option works best for you and your family. You can check out some easy DIY composts here.
If you cannot or do not want to compost but want to contribute to richer soils, no problem! Check with your municipality to know whether there is a composting centre to bring your compostable food waste to, or even a compost pick-up service (it may or may not align with recycling and garbage pick-up days). Many community gardens (or Victory Gardens) and some garden centres will also accept compost-friendly food waste.
Municipal, provincial and federal activism
The thing about food sovereignty and food security is that they impact everyone not equally, but collectively. We pay for food insecurity in the form of food aid, federal and provincial taxes and higher healthcare costs. Food insecure individuals are at greater risk for developing chronic and acute health conditions, which will consequently require more frequent and demanding healthcare visits. And individuals living with a disability is also more disproportionally affected by food insecurity.
Studies have demonstrated that food insecurity and its associated consequences can be greatly reduced via policy interventions that target the financial circumstances of households in the lower brackets of the income spectrum. These interventions could be greatly ameliorated in existing policies, such as minimum wage, social assistance and disability assistance, public old age pension, and the Canada Child Benefit program, to name a few. Unfortunately, little progress or impact has been made in any of these policies and programs in recent decades. But let’s keep trying!
You can contribute to and bring forward new policies to your government, to show them that these issues matter to you. One example is Canada Food Bank’s policy #4, to increase basic income for low-income households and adults, as a means to combat food insecurity using sustainable approaches.
What’s more, although some of the grassroots methods that I’ve mentioned (community gardens, local food banks, communal kitchens, etc) are part of the solution towards food sovereignty, they do not yet have the proven impact to mitigate food insecure households across the country. As such, it takes a greater systemic role on the part of local, provincial and federal governments to improve and expand on existing policies to address issues pertaining to food insecurity.
All this to say, I encourage you to vote and reach out to your local leaders! They need to be reminded of the importance of policies (or lack thereof) affecting food insecure citizens so as to incorporate better policies and budgets towards this major issue and its ripple effects.
Sourcing from libraries
Yes, I am aware that the internet exists and happens to be useful. But libraries are my favourite go-to for information on a given subject. It is a great place to expand on new ways to practice food sovereignty and learn new skills, too!
Libraries work similarly to community centres in that they are a free space for people to come together, to learn and exchange. New activities and programs can be requested, and after reading this blog post you may be inspired to request some new themes at your local library. There is so much to learn, even if it’s just to learn what is available at the library!
Enjoy your time with this valuable and free resource.
Pay it forward
It’s not a new concept, but not everyone is familiar with the term “pay it forward.” A person can do something for you and instead of returning them the favour, you then do something good for someone else. This could be a purchase or an act of service, such as paying for the next stranger’s coffee at a café, donating clothes or books to a local community centre or shelter, or lending a hand to mow your neighbour’s lawn, as examples.
Paying it forward with a food security mindset could look like donating needed ingredients to your local food bank or other organization, volunteering at a community garden
You could also donate to a non-profit organization (NGO) who’s mission is to reduce and eliminate food insecurity and hunger, whether locally or abroad. Examples of NGOs with missions around food security are:
World Vision, UN World Food Program, FairFoodNetwork, Second Harvest, Food Secure Canada, Action Against Hunger Canada
Rainwater saving
This solution will apply if you have access to land (such as a yard or community garden) or a balcony. Rainwater collection is so easy, you don’t even need to think about it! And it could save you from some high water bills in the summer, or save your dried-up and scorched plants! A rain barrel will allow you to collect rainwater and store it for the very hot, dry days of summer when your plants need quenching.
You can purchase a rain barrel online or from a hardware store, or even make your own (there are DIY kits and instructions – see the link below for an example).
Here are a few examples of rainwater barrels:
Collapsable barrel Square plastic barrel DIY Kit to make your own barrel
Purchase in bulk
Buying in bulk can be useful to reduce costs, but it’s not always practical or feasible. For example, I live on my own and so I rarely go to Costco to buy items because the sizes and portions are far too large for my living quarters, budget and my goal to reduce food waste. However, I sometimes split some products with friends and family, and this helps me to have only what I need from a bulk purchase.
I also shop at some places that offer bulk items, but where I can purchase very small or very large quantities because the quantities are not pre-determined. I like to buy spices, flours or nuts at at a store that sells bulk items and ingredients, such as Bulk Barn. Here is a list of things that you might want to purchase in bulk,
When it comes to buying meat in bulk, some families will come together to purchase a whole animal, such as a sheep or deer, to help feed them for the year and split the cost amongst them. If there’s a great sale on fruit, jams store well. I’ve made small cubes of garlic clove and garlic flower in a bit of salt and oil to freeze, and I just pop them out as needed for a recipe. Or store some spicy string beans as a great side dish! I could keep going with so many examples…
Check out my article on making smart choices when it comes to buying groceries.
Volunteering
One of the most underrated and undervalued elements that is essential to the health and success of any movement is volunteering. Most non-profit organisations and grassroots movements depend on volunteers to assist in their missions, including movements that are working towards a food secure community.
Examples are delivering prepared meals or donated grocery items to food insecure households, creating urban food gardens on public lands, facilitating workshops on composting, writing about how to budget for groceries, or teaching children how to grow a garden and prepare meals with that produce while at school.
Ron Finley, a man who began to plant gardens on public land in South Central Los Angeles (a renown food desert) said that “- to change the community, we have to change the composition of the soil. And we are the soil.”
Heck yeah!
Ask questions
Participating in the creation of a food sovereign world, especially an urban one, is no easy feat. In some cases, there are municipal bylaws and red tape to deal with; in other cases, it might be managing the costs associated with making changes and taking action. Or something I have dealt with personally, is the perspectives the people around me have which oppose my own perspectives and actions. This generates complaints and resistance to change, even though its for a better and healthier community. From said experiences, I know that a divided community will have less success in becoming resilient and food sovereign.
Now, my proposition to you is to ask yourself the following questions:
- What do you want to see in your community and around your home?
- What can you do, or how can you contribute to the changes you want to see?
- Who can you help, and who can help you, to deliver those changes?
- How will these changes impact the health of your environment, community, and your own health?
Feel free to share your answers, and other questions or suggestions you might have!
Did you read Part I of this series? Go check it out!
P.S. Thanks for reading. 🙂
