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Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

latimes.com

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Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#31

Post by mc32 »

silly-silly wrote: post #27
mc32 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unless surface to capture rainfall is clean, it can be contaminated with animal droppings. Also if it's treated sewage, I'm not sure if it's treated enough against pathogens. Contaminated crops usually uptake the pathogens from their water intake rather than from "dirty handling" and given it's within the produce itself, you cannot "wash it off". Cooking solves the issue, of course, but not all produce gets cooked.

> Unless surface to capture rainfall is clean, it can be contaminated with animal droppings. Your going to have a bad time when you find out what most organic fertilizer comes from.

Heh, sure... but hopefully not with unneutralized disease carrying pathogens.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#32

Post by thaumasiotes »

bombcar wrote: post #18
iammisc wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, the other thing is that these food desert studies fail to take into account ethnic differences. For example, hispanic corner stores often basically are a mini grocery store, with fresh produce and stuff. They are not the equivalent of a 7-11. But these studies often only count the Safeways and Albertsons. And plus, I grew up close to these areas and was often in South LA, and they're not food deserts. I have no…

I think a much more useful study would be to canvas areas and determine what people eat - as large amounts of home cooked meals basically indicate that there is some source of staples, even if it isn’t one of the “approved supermarkets”. Around here you can get significant staples from the gas station, and not at bad prices either.

> a much more useful study would be to canvas areas and determine what people eat - as large amounts of home cooked meals basically indicate that there is some source of staples

This methodology doesn't lead to the conclusions you're trying to find. It's not valid.

Assume that most people who aren't cooking meals at home from basic staples behave the way they do not because they can't find the staples but because they don't want them. What would your study find? What would it conclude?

All that said, it is certainly true that Los Angeles Hispanics eat large amounts of home-cooked meals.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#33

Post by nobltt »

ffggvv wrote: post #22

They say theres an albertsons a mile away. I guarantee they have fresh veggies and they can easily walk there.

At a brisk pace, 2 miles (there and back) will take about 40 minutes...and then carrying bags of groceries on the way back too.

Easy I suppose if you've not had to do that too many times yourself.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#34

Post by cageface »

iammisc wrote: post #2

Great hobby (I really mean that... my wife and I grow, process, and preserve a significant portion of our own produce in our front lawn), but ultimately, these are only marginally less wasteful than lawns. The distribution costs (environmental and otherwise) of having many small farms easily overpowers the current situation, which allows for more efficiency. Plus, it takes quite a bit of intense effort to farm enough…

meat is pound for pound more efficient at energy storage for humans

Citation definitely needed here. Meat is an extremely inefficient vehicle for getting calories into humans.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#35

Post by clairity »

mc32 wrote: post #29
clairity wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

e.coli is everywhere, including inside us, so that's not a fruitful avenue to assessing risk. only a few strains cause sickness, and as i understand it, those are largely found in, and make it into our food supply from, industrial farm settings.

Right, but it’s through contaminated water. Industrial or not, water is the medium.

but the rainwater's not already contaminated... unless you perhaps happen to live directly downstream from a factory farm, but even then, e.coli isn't airborne, so it wouldn't be in collected rainwater. there are certainly no factory farms in south LA to worry about.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#36

Post by throwawaysea »

nobltt wrote: post #33
ffggvv wrote: post #22

They say theres an albertsons a mile away. I guarantee they have fresh veggies and they can easily walk there.

At a brisk pace, 2 miles (there and back) will take about 40 minutes...and then carrying bags of groceries on the way back too. Easy I suppose if you've not had to do that too many times yourself.

Growing up, we didn’t have a car for a time, and had to make a similar grocery trip every week by foot, in the freezing cold, about the same length. We put on layers, walked as a family (adults and kids), and everyone carried bags back. It wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t bad either. The walk kept you warm, it was time together, and it became a very tolerable and normal routine.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#39

Post by koyote »

nobltt wrote: post #33
ffggvv wrote: post #22

They say theres an albertsons a mile away. I guarantee they have fresh veggies and they can easily walk there.

At a brisk pace, 2 miles (there and back) will take about 40 minutes...and then carrying bags of groceries on the way back too. Easy I suppose if you've not had to do that too many times yourself.

I used to live 20 minutes walk from the closest non-convenience store.

I carried a medium-sized rucksack and went shopping more regularly.

Obviously not quite as easy for an old age pensioner or people that might also have issues walking with a heavy bag, but the vast majority of people do not fall into that category.

Nowadays I get my big shopping delivered, but still sometimes walk (to the now closer shop) with rucksack. For the further afield discount alcohol shop I often bike there, again with rucksack and/or side bags.

Re: Microfarms come to South L.A. frontyards, bringing fresh produce to food deserts

#40

Post by anm89 »

nsxwolf wrote: post #37

I’m lucky enough to live near several grocery stores and have a high income. I eat junk and am fat. Are we sure this will work?

It's not about being sure it will work. It's about giving options for decent food to people who want it, not physically forcing it into their bodies.
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