There's no doubt that the local foods movement is gaining support across New York City, as citizens seek to more socially responsible, transparently-produced, and community-based foods. Due in part to the eloquent argument of authors like Michael Pollan (The Omnivore's Dilemma), Greenmarket popularity is soaring, and more people are researching where and how to get fresh produce, straight from the farm to the urban table. But there has always been a disconnect between these upper middle class and food-savvy locavores and the millions of New Yorkers (including me) whose most "local food" is the commodified stuff from the bodega next door.
Now the city is rolling out its ambitious new Green Carts program, which will bring fresh fruits and veggies to low-consumption, food-isolated neighborhoods over the next two years. A thousand permits will be issued, and approved curbside vendors will, perhaps as early as late spring, be selling apples and celery. Amid opposition from supermarket lobbies and council opponents who fear the carts will squeeze out small business competition, legislation passed last Wednesday, and green carts could soon be coming to a street corner near you. Check out these current articles for further reading:
350 produce sellers OK'd for Brooklyn (Daily News)
A Streetcart Named Healthy (NYTimes Op-ed)
Aiming to Put More Carts and Better Food on the Streets (NYTimes)
I'm most curious to hear what New York City public school students think about all this! Will they patronize the green carts, or regard them as an annoyance? Perhaps because the legislation is rife with controversy, the issue is a perfect current events persuasive writing prompt. You might ask your students to research the issue: what is a green cart? why does the city say we need them? why do certain grocers oppose the legislation? Perhaps set up a mock council meeting, and allow your students to defend their researched viewpoints.
Encourage them to think about the many different food distributors in their communities: where do they get their food on a daily basis? (Here's where a week's worth of food logs are enlightening). You might want to take trips to the bodega, the street vendor, the nearest grocery store, or a slightly bigger grocery store further away. You can ask them the same basic question at each location: what is being sold? Then throw the Green Cart monkey wrench into the local food scene: What, if anything (eating habits, competition, selection, health), changes with the presence of green carts? If nothing else, it'd be fascinating to find out from students how they feel about what they eat.
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