Notable Edibles Food changemakers
IN THE CITY of Detroit, the food insecurity rate is 69%, meaning a majority of residents lack access to healthy food, according to the Detroit Food Policy Council. Several food activists are working to change that. Meet some of the food advocates leading the way to a healthier city.
Theresa Tejada has aways been interested in food. Growing up, her family had a vibrant home garden and a family restaurant for 65 years where she witnessed the role that food plays in health, economy and culture.
Now, as a program manager at the National Kidney Foundation of Michigan (NKFM), she’s bringing that love of food to help others lead healthier lives.
“Diabetes and high blood pressure are the leading causes of chronic kidney disease and often can be managed or prevented through a healthy diet,” says Tejada. “However, we know that where people live, work and learn has a significant impact on the types of choices that one can make. The work that the NKFM has been working on to make fruits and vegetables more accessible includes collaborating with the Inkster Task Force to launch and grow the task force’s farmers market while working with early child care and education settings to connect with local foods and start gardens.”
Tejada says these efforts have involved collaboration on developing policies for their respective organizations that align with state and federal food policies and programs. She is also involved with the Western Wayne County Food Policy Council, a new group working collaboratively to shape the local food system and ensure that nutritious food is accessible to all residents in Western Wayne County.
The council completed a community engagement process where they learned from residents in Dearborn, Inkster, Redford, Romulus and Westland about their thoughts on the food system in their community. They are now planning a process to develop strategies based on what they have learned and looking at holding a summit.
The Detroit Food Policy Council (DFPC) is an education, advocacy and policy-making organization led by a group of local Detroit residents committed to creating a sustainable system that promotes food security, food justice and food sovereignty in the city of Detroit.
It is one of more than 300 local food policy councils (FPC) operating around North America. The organization came out of community action led by the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network (now Detroit Black Community Food Sovereignty Network) and formed by resolution of the Detroit City Council in 2009.
The council is composed of 23 members representing all facets of Detroit’s vibrant food system, from elected officials to residents, according to Winona Bynum, DFPC executive director. DFPC is connected with other councils throughout the country run by the Johns Hopkins University and the FPCs in the state through the Michigan Local Food Council Network (MLFCN) convened by Michigan State University’s Center for Regional Food Systems, Bynum adds.
The council’s current initiatives include the Great Grocer Project, which provides a rating of grocery stores and aims to help stores stock and sell healthy food, and the Healthy Corner Store Initiative. The council is also a member of local, state and national coalitions and networks working on policy issues—including being committee members of the Michigan Good Food Charter—among others. It also hosts an annual food summit to facilitate the sharing of ideas and knowledge.
“Sixty million people every year fall ill to food-borne illnesses. Sixty percent of these people become ill from eating at a restaurant.”
—CHEF PHIL JONES
The DFPC educates residents about healthy food choices while helping them understand their relationship to policies, ensuring that they are hunger-free, healthy and benefit economically from the food system.
If it has something to do with food and health in the city of Detroit, Chef Phil Jones has been a part of it.
As a 6-year-old child in the early 1970s, his first job was selling fish and meat patties on the Caribbean island Saint Croix. Since then, he trained as a formal chef while rising through the ranks, working at storied places such as Rattlesnake Club and Beverly Hills Grill. After working in restaurant kitchens, he shifted his focus to improving the local food system with an eye toward equity.
He caters and hosts cooking demonstrations with Eastern Market, informed by his years of experience in the restaurant industry. He is a founding member of the DFPC and Keep Growing Detroit, working with food advocacy, urban farmers and apprenticeship programs.
He is currently a community food specialist for Detroit City Council’s 3rd District.
“I work with City Council to institute a voluntary placard system with our local restaurants and food establishments within the city of Detroit in order to improve food safety measures,” says Jones. “Sixty million people every year fall ill to food-borne illnesses. Sixty percent of these people become ill from eating at a restaurant.”
The voluntary placard system is a visual key posted on the wall or door to show consumers that the restaurant is compliant with basic food regulations such as the temperatures to keep certain foods at or a system to avoid raw foods cross-contaminating cooked foods. In addition, Jones is working on an ordinance to improve the business licensing process for restaurants.
Jones says safer food standards is the way forward for Detroit.
Mike Lerchenfeldt is a Metro Detroit–based freelance writer and English / language arts teacher. He is a graduate of Oakland University. Find him at muckrack.com/ml.
