The Art Of Breaking Bread And Sharing The Surplus

"How do we reconnect communities to what's ancestrally and indigenously theirs?"

- Johnathan Zaidman, Director of Engagement & Impact at The Ecology Center. 

In most cultures, "devour and scatter" simply doesn't exist. The best memories are made around the table, fire, or any other way of congregating for a meal. As an Italian, the importance of food and nourishment was understood from a young age. The weekly ritual of "Sunday Sauce" was our birthright in which every family member contributed and shared. Inherited from a lineage of farmers, "Sunday Sauce" was the tradition of sourcing ingredients from our farm or local market. It was the transfer of "how-to's" like hand-making pasta and rolling the best meatballs on the East Coast! It was the kitchen backsplash, covered in red splatters as homemade tomato sauce bubbled for hours over the stove. Somewhere between laughter and loudness, we told stories, we drank my grandfather's wine—we danced! And every Sunday, those family members who were still with us gathered.

Since the beginning of time, human behavior has always revolved around food. Meals have shaped the cultural heritage of Indigenous America to the furthest tip of East Asia. Ceremonies have been historically assigned, whether it be how women foraged for berries, men hunted wild game, or how after-dinner celebrations led to dancing barefoot around a pit.

But today, a bleak, gray shroud conceals once rainbow-colored customs. Conventional agriculture dismantled the intricate human connection existing around food traditions. "Sunday Sauce" has become a distant memory as capitalism and industrialization crept away with what we value most. Inequality and food insecurity has paralyzed culinary heritage as families struggle to find food as simple as rice or grains. Ethical principles in agroecology and regenerative agriculture force these tough conversations to the surface. To reinstate what was stolen from our livelihoods, we need a complete overhaul of the food system as we know it. Only then can humankind restore the celebration of having bread to break bread.

Food Is A Human Right

Current industrial food systems are disjointed; on the one hand, billions of people face famine and hunger. In 2020, the FAO estimated that between 720 and 811 million people faced starvation. One in three people did not have adequate access to food, and two billion suffer from micronutrient deficiencies. On the other hand, tons of food cycles through landfills, and billions of people experience food-related diseases such as obesity and heart disease.

What is the right to food? Access to adequate food is a human right, bound and protected by international law, which is widely recognized by most states. Article 25 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) outlines that "​​everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food." The United Nations Special Rapporteur defines the right to food as "​​regular, permanent and unrestricted access to adequate and sufficient food corresponding to the cultural traditions of the people to which the consumer belongs." Shifting the paradigm to focus on the human rights aspect of food creates a starting point for reform in civil, cultural, economic, social, and political barriers surrounding food insecurity.

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Underserving Women and Girls

Hunger and malnutrition disproportionately affect persons who identify as women and girls. In nearly two-thirds of countries worldwide, gender inequality is a primary factor in food deprivation for women. One causation reported by the World Food Program references "deep-rooted" gender norms in developing countries, one in which women eat last, eat without diversity, or sacrifice food entirely. This phenomenon occurs despite women requiring the same amount of nutrition as men—while doing 2.6 times more (unpaid) domestic work.

The second causation identified man-made conflict as the number one driver of hunger on the planet, primarily harming women and girls. In developing countries, women earn 23% less than men. When war strikes, they become the head of the household and, with a low salary, sacrifice their well-being to feed their families.

Lastly, the lack of women's rights amplifies the effects of food inequality. Despite making up half of the world's agricultural workers, women produce 20-30% less due to a lack of farming resources such as tools, technology, and information. Without decision-making powers, the ability to own land, or access to education, women are unable to reach their true potential in society. When women are stripped of their equal rights, the world suffers, and sustainability becomes a concept frozen in time.

Empowering Women

Women, and persons identifying as such, are the key to ending world hunger and food insecurity. On average, women and girls reinvest about 90% of their income back into the household while men reinvest 30-40%. They contribute to maintaining the home by purchasing food, cleaning equipment, medicine, and education supplies. Dedication to the household amplifies their consciousness of sustainable agro-practices intended to mitigate adverse health implications on their families. Women are also multi-generational guardians of the land and cultural heritage, one that is an innate part of their being. Thus, Women are at the literal heart of all agrosystems.

When not constrained by inequalities, women and girls become a resource cohort for transferring knowledge such as seed-saving, water storage, seasonal planting, and harvesting. Supporting them in agriculture will enhance productivity and technological advances, decreasing the number of people living in hunger and poverty by 100-150 million.

Mending Food Inequality With Johnathan Zaidman

A working question posed—how do we reconnect communities to what's ancestrally and indigenously theirs? It all circles back to having a living relationship with food, one that is tangible—seen, touched, smelled, and tasted.

"You look at many immigrant families, and they are one or two generations removed from agriculture. Their parents or their grandparents grew their own food or harvested food or were part of an agricultural career or just personal effort. And, a lot of times in the immigration story, that family comes here and actually becomes the one further from real food. You look at food deserts disproportionately affecting black and brown communities and the individuals who have real relationships."

Addressing the disparity within the food system is no easy feat, but The Ecology Center has taken mega strides to ensure all community members have equal access to the surplus. On Wednesdays, groups of children from neighboring schools, primarily kids of ethnic origin, arrive at the farm to create a feast for themselves and their families to enjoy. The children look deeply at their heritage and the lives of their ancestors, re-discovering a connection to the land.

"So the idea is—how do we bring those kids here? How do we have those recurring field trip experiences where they harvest, cultivate, and help prepare a meal that they invite their parents or grandparents to? [How do they] serve them or sit with them and talk about the things that grandma or grandpa is like "oh, I grew that too" and re-bridge this gap again."

At the same time, children from this program, Fiesta Verde, the summer camps, and the regular school year learn the art of sharing the surplus with food insecure families called Nourishing Neighbors. The Ecology Center serves its community by donating at least 150 nutritious meals to food insecure families weekly.

"Why aren't your kids paying attention in school? It's because they're malnourished. They have enough calories but not the right kind. So, we wanted to create something much more intimate and build relationships with families—so it's not like we'll just come once! We make a commitment to your families that you know every single week you can come to this farm. You can get a freshly made meal, so a jarred soup or salad, or I call it rice beans and greens bowl. Where you're going to have nutrient-dense ingredients, fresh, local, organic, and seasonal. It's something that you can feed your kids and know that you are having a healthy meal."

This is quite the opposite of a food bank or pantry focused on keeping people fed and alive. The weekly Nourishing Neighbors is keeping people full and nourished. Rather than providing families a farm box, assuming all food would be used, they now operate under the principle of "take what you need and will use." This practice has been proven successful in food waste diversion, complimenting the permaculture principles governing the farm.