How much do urban gardens contribute to our food supply?--Wayne Chow, New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , NY The United Nations Development Program estimates that urban gardens, like the ones springing up all over New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. and Seattle, provide 15 percent of the world's food supply. They also create sorely needed jobs in neglected neighborhoods and introduce concrete-raised children to the wonders of nature. Gardens bolster community pride and eliminate some of the environmental problems of modern agribusiness agribusiness Agriculture operated by business; specifically, that part of a modern national economy devoted to the production, processing, and distribution of food and fibre products and byproducts. , including heavy use of pesticides and pollution from long-distance transportation. Town planners, who may worry that constituents will be offended by manure and dirt, often view urban agriculture suspiciously. However, there are many examples of successful urban gardens. Hong Kong Hong Kong (hŏng kŏng), Mandarin Xianggang, special administrative region of China, formerly a British crown colony (2005 est. pop. 6,899,000), land area 422 sq mi (1,092 sq km), adjacent to Guangdong prov. , one of the world's most densely populated pop·u·late tr.v. pop·u·lat·ed, pop·u·lat·ing, pop·u·lates 1. To supply with inhabitants, as by colonization; people. 2. cities, produces about half of its vegetables in urban gardens. In Moscow, nearly 65 percent of families engage in some kind of food production. In Havana, Cuba, urban gardens also play a crucial role. South Central Los Angeles' "Food from the 'Hood" program provides college funds for the high school students who maintain organic gardens. San Francisco's Fresh Start Farms employs homeless families to grow produce for local restaurants. Even some U.S. prisons have now started urban gardens, which can be on rooftops as well as on the ground. CONTACT: Food from the 'Hood, (888)601-FOOD, www.foodfromthehood.com; Fresh Start Farms, (415)487-9778, www.grassroots.org/usa/fresh.shtml. |
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