Ethel Richards MScN’24 reflects on her Farm to Table course and engaging with Georgia’s agricultural and foodie community.
This story was originally published in the Fall 2023 edition of SUGS Pulse – the School of Undergraduate & Graduate Studies Newsletter.
One of my favorite holidays is Earth Day, and it was during this year’s celebration that I learned of the Black Church Food Security Network out of Baltimore, MD.
With this in mind, I decided to approach my Farm to Table course with an emphasis on connecting with local Black Farmers in Metro Atlanta. This pursuit opened many doors that gave me access to meet farmers from all walks of life, see just how robust the farm-to-table community is, and connect with others who are passionate about the environment, healthy soil, climate change, and so much more.
Leveraging the course’s opportunity to engage in person in the agricultural and foodie community has helped me to see just how expansive the agricultural community is in Georgia.
During my visits to many farms owned and operated by Black Farmers, I heard many stories and learned a lot more about the challenges farmers face on a daily basis which are being compounded by global warming. I also greatly appreciated the presence of Wholesome Wave Georgia at each farmer’s market engaging eligible patrons with SNAP and EBT dollars.
At farmer’s markets in Georgia, all SNAP and EBT dollars are doubled (1:2) when buying produce, that is fruits and vegetables! The pinnacle of it all was attending AgLanta Eats where I met many farmers, chefs, climate activists, food sovereignty champions, environmental change agents, and so many others.
In the non-farm-to-table vernacular, this was a foodie event, however, in the farm-to-table vernacular, this was one of the biggest farm-to-table showcases the Metro Atlanta area holds each year. I was able to see the latter textbook chapters in action during this event from tasting tents featuring food from local farms to opportunities to engage in the cause. There was something for everyone!
There is an opportunity for me to support closing the gap in Georgia by collaborating and partnering not just with farmers markets, but also with established programs to support community reach and hands-on education.
As I visited various entities and spoke with various people within the farm-to-table community in Metro Atlanta, it became very clear that there is a gap between the farmer, their food, and the community. Specifically, much like I observed and learned in South Africa, I am seeing the same trends here in the U.S., and that is, of all the food varieties grown most people have no idea how to prepare the food.
In essence, many people do not know what to do with the food available to them. Should they purchase varieties unique to them, they often are not privy to the various methods of preparation to maximize their palatability. There is an opportunity for me to support closing the gap in Georgia by collaborating and partnering not just with farmers markets, but also with established programs to support community reach and hands-on education.
I really enjoyed getting out and learning more about Metro Atlanta’s Farm-to-table community. I will continue to meet and greet farmers, chefs, environmental enthusiasts, climate champions, and so many more to help build the bridge that closes the gap between the farm, the farmer, their food, and the community.
by Ethel Richards, MScN ’24
As a result of her experience with the farm-to-table experience in the Metro Atlanta area, Ethel Richards was invited to speak at the Morehouse School of Medicine.
Watch her presentation below to learn about the farm-to-table movement and ways to eat organic, affordably, by joining a CSA and supporting local farmers!