Urban Farms: The Name Says It All

If you have driven west on Sam Cooper, then you have likely seen the sign on the corner of the old gas station at Sam Cooper and Tillman St. that says “Urban Farms.” Urban Farms is a farmers market that targets lower income areas to give the people of these communities the ability to buy fresh produce and eat healthy and still have money left over to get them through the month. The majority of low income families do not eat healthy and according to national statistics the majority of these communities are obese (http://www.obesityaction.org/educationaltools/factsandstats.php.)

The source of this problem is not just that people cannot afford to eat healthy, but the fact that people value convenience and refuse to buy foods that they have to prepare for themselves. The fact that many people are raised on junk food or processed food and develop those tastes only reinforces their eating habits. Many individuals will fill their shopping carts with Faygo, Gatorade, frozen pizzas, and marshmallow cereals. Why? To some it may be a matter of taste, but for others it is a matter of survival. They can provide more calories to their loved ones by feeding them processed foods than “whole” foods (e. g., a McDonald’s double cheeseburger from the dollar menu will give someone almost a quarter of their daily calorie intake, while that same dollar in the produce section at Kroger would only get them about fifty calories). Or a third reason Americans gravitate toward processed food is just plain laziness. They do not want to have to get the pan out of the cupboard and cook.

Another statistic shows that areas with farmers markets tend to have healthier people living there (http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/02/want-to-be-thinner-live-near-farmers-markets-eat-fruit.php.) We should be careful not to infer that if farmers markets are placed in areas that have a majority of overweight or unhealthy individuals then they will eat healthier, becoming healthier in the process. This is a common misconception known as the “association-is-causation fallacy.” People that shop at farmers markets are people that purchase produce, fresh eggs and milk, butter and basically all of the non-processed foods found along the perimeter inside their local grocery store, and want these same products that are fresh and grown by the local farmers.

I understand the idea behind creating the Urban Farms, but I also understand good marketing techniques and Urban Farms is not one of them. Good marketing caters to the popular tastes of the people of the area. If people spend their money on bread, milk, carrots, and celery, and learned to how to cook and drink water instead of soda, they would save more than they would buying processed “junk.” The eating habits of people comes with culture, and Memphis is known for having some the worst eating habits in the United States. Teaching people about healthy eating is one thing, and getting them to do it is another.

What are your opinions on the points I have made here? Please feel free to support what I have said, give me your own insight to Urban Farms, or tell me why I am wrong.