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Food desert-noun
a geographic area usually urban and low income,
that lacks access to affordable fruits, vegetables, whole grains, meat and milk.
The North Carolina Division of Public Health
in support of Eat Smart Move More North Carolina presents…
Food Oasis
A 2010 study revealed more than 72,700 Mecklenburg County, NC residents currently live in food deserts.
[scenes of fast food locations]
Life in a Food Desert
I’m a native Charlottean…one of those rare breeds.
I grew up here in Charlotte in the neighborhood that I live in now, as a matter of fact.
Thelma’s family moved to the Lincoln Heights neighborhood in 1945.
When I was here growing up as a child it was a very professional community,
a lot of teachers, a lot of professional people, a lot of business owners.
Today Lincoln Heights is a predominantly black, densely populated neighborhood.
Approximately 22% of residents live below the poverty level.
Over 60% have no more than a high school education.
Thelma travels 20 minutes to buy high quality, fresh foods…
in North Carolina’s largest county and city.
[interviewer] What do you think would make it easier for people in your community to access those types of fresh foods?
Build a store in our neighborhood.
Charlotte’s entire northwest corridor lacks access to affordable, healthy foods.
All of the neighborhoods on the corridor…these are all neighborhoods that have been here for years,
the people have been here for years. The seniors have lived here, been productive citizens here and they still live here.
We like it, we don't want to go anywhere.
And to be able to shop in our own neighborhood would be a tremendous opportunity.
How Mecklenburg County is Improving Food Access
We have over 72,000 people who live in food desert areas in Mecklenburg County right now.
So that’s a large amount of people that we need to get to and get some fresh produce to
so they can have the access at least to be able to start eating more fruits and vegetables.
The Black Women’s Health Network is a non-profit organization that helps black women and children in underserved communities develop healthy lifestyles.
The “Time to Harvest, Farm to Family” program
delivers fruits and vegetables from local farmers to people living in food deserts.
They are now expanding this program to 6 churches in food deserts throughout Mecklenburg County.
The garden program started about four years ago and we grow two sets of plants.
In the fall we grow broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower,
and then in the spring we grow tomatoes, squash and lettuce.
This garden project at Barringer Academic Center allows children to plant, harvest and eat their own vegetables and herbs.
[pictures] Salad Garden Project/Class Garden Plots
The pizza garden is a program that started last year with FUEL Pizza.
And they grow all the ingredients for their own pizzas and then
at the end they get to go to the restaurant and take their ingredients and make a pizza
with their spinach and their onions and oregano and basil.
Call to action
So much work to do and we need so many more foot soldiers to get it done.
So that’s what I do along the way, I recruit a lot of foot soldiers.
The people of Mecklenburg County, NC drive efforts to revitalize their food environment.
[interviewer from background] It sounds like you really love your community.
I do, I do…it’s home.
Thelma and other community advocates educate on overwhelming challenges to food access.
There are other partners in our community that are really trying to do some things and, you know, make it happen.
Mecklenburg County Fruit and Vegetable Coalition, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Food Policy Council, Mecklenburg County Health Department, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
One of the easy action items and programmatic things that we are doing
for the Mecklenburg Fruit and Vegetable Coalition
are the community gardens…are the school gardens.
Community gardens are sustainable and economical sources of fresh, local food.
That’s what we really like to see is a lot more community gardens
in all of the food desert areas at least.
You can help develop gardens at schools, housing communities, places of worship and vacant lots.
For more information, visit EatSmartMoveMoreNC.com