Feeding people in major cities exerts a lot more pressure on the environment than you might think. Take the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area, for example, which has a total population of some 7 million people. Feeding that many people means importing 2.5 to 3 million tons of food per day over an average distance of 500 to 1,000 miles, which requires massive amounts of energy and generates significant greenhouse gas emissions. And even with all that food coming in, 1 out of every 8 people in the region have little access to food. With that being said, there is a way to alleviate some of this food insecurity while minimizing emissions: Urban agriculture. In Cuba, more than 300,000 urban farms and gardens produce about 50 percents of the island’s fresh produce, reaching yields of 44 pounds of food per square meter per year. If trained farmers in Oakland could achieve just half of Cuban yields, 1,200 acres of land would be enough to provide 100 kilograms of food per year per person to more than 90 percent of Oakland residents. This would drastically limit the need for transporting food over long distances and provide people with locally grown food, all while sucking carbon out of the air by adding more green space across the city. If we want to improve food security in American cities, we must continue focusing on urban farming.
Urban farming can alleviate food insecurity in American cities
More of Today's Solutions
New stem cell treatment shows promise for reversing vision loss in macular de...
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For millions living with age-related macular degeneration, seeing the world head-on becomes an exercise in frustration. Faces blur, ...
Read More3 so-called bad habits that might actually be making you a better person
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Let’s be honest. Most of us have habits we wish we could kick. Maybe it’s venting too much ...
Read More7 clever ways to give your old egg cartons new life
While it’s possible to recycle old egg cartons, there are many ways you can repurpose cartons in order to give them a second life ...
Read MoreHave a short-temper? Tips from an empathy expert on how to stay cool
You aren’t alone if you can relate to having a short fuse every once in a while, however, this can greatly affect your relationships, ...
Read More
