Eating Our Veggies... But Growing Them First

I remember being shocked a few years ago when I read that if we all wanted to eat healthy by eating the recommended number of fruits and vegetables each day, there wouldn't be enough to go around... the US doesn't grow or even import enough fruits and vegetables to allow each American to eat the recommended diet!

^{Plenty of lettuce at Stony Loam Farm in Charlotte, but not enough to go around.}

This fact leads to the obvious conversation about how to shift both the American diet and American farmland toward fruits and vegetables.

The issues of what crop farmers grow and what foods in America are cheap are rooted in the policies of the Farm Bill - the federal legislation that subsidizes corn and soybean production, but not lettuce or green bean or tomato or kale production.

I'll admit it, Farm Bill policy conversations tend to make my eyes glaze over, even though these issues are important.

That's why I was impressed to see the Union of Concerned Scientists release the following beautiful image that perfectly captures these issues in such an easy and engaging way:

Healthy diets, local food, strong local economies, and job growth are all things we can support. Hopefully Congress can as well when they debate Farm Bill policies later this year. Stay tuned!