The Brooklyn Food Health Council is made up of voters across Brooklyn who are fighting to get the funds to create easy, affordable access to fresh fruits and vegetables. We know our children, families and seniors must have the chance to have regular access to fresh produce to lead a healthy life. 

Our communities desperately need affordable, nearby access to fresh fruits and vegetables. It is unjust that richer neighborhoods in Brooklyn and across New York can take nearby access to fresh fruits and vegetables - the key to good health - for granted.

We can no longer accept that we must live in a community where we cannot easily buy fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers. Our families also deserve and have the right to good health.

We thereby ask that you fund Seeds in the Middle's discretionary application #110780 for $150,000 or even more funds so we can fund the markets below - led by us and community leaders and neighbors - and maybe more.

These neighborhoods are in central Brooklyn, one  of 3 NYC neighborhoods with chronic food insecurity, especially exacerbated during the Covid-19 pandemic. These neighborhoods are predominantly made up of Black and Brown residents, and have the highest obesity, diabetes, heart disease rates in the city. People here get these preventable diseases at 2 or 3x the rate of richer white neighbors, and they are dying from Covid-19 at 2 or 3 times the rate of NYC citizens in higher income neighborhoods. 

There is no need for this and it is unjust and cruel. Community leaders are fully capable of running a successful local healthy farmstand/flea or business, which can be sustainable. They deserve to get the funds to do so.

Our markets will be crafted by the community for the community and will be a ring of fresh markets, drawn together and overseen by the Brooklyn Food Health Council, to erase "food deserts" or the lack of fresh fruits and vegetables and healthy opportunities in central Brooklyn. 

The year-round markets will accept EBT/SNAP, Health Bucks, FMNP and any other incentives to buy fresh, plus be supplied with FREE Hip2B Healthy Bucks so everyone can buy fresh and NO ONE will be turned away because of financial issues. 

We also will be working with local organizations, city agencies, service organizations, health organizations and local people to become vendors and build their small businesses and expand awareness of resources available to our neighborhoods. All markets, where possible, will have edible gardens attached.

We invite local small businesses, especially our creative neighbors who do not have brick and mortar storefronts, to take part in our flea markets. 

We have also asked for funding from the City Council for fresh coupons so everyone can get free coupons to buy fresh. Please see our petition: change.org/freshcouponsforall (now with more than 1900 signatures of voters). 

Please work with us to create a sustainable network of access to fresh food that is for the people by the people and also offers economic development in neighborhoods that need it  the most. The Centers for Disease Control says the cure to obesity and preventable diseases is to make fresh, healthy food nearby and affordable. This network will do so.

PLEASE FUND US SO WE CAN WORK TOGETHER TO END FOOD DESERTS IN BROOKLYN AND CREATE A MODEL FOR URBAN FOOD-INSECURE NEIGHBORHOODS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. 

No one should be deprived of fresh food. Healthy Eating is a Civil Right

Please fund Seeds in the Middle's Discretionary Application #100280, specifically addressed to the Speaker, the Brooklyn Delegation, Speaker, BLAC Caucus and Women's Caucus of $150,000 to support our network of farm stands and gardens in central Brooklyn's food-insecure neighborhoods #110752. 

Our ask to Mayor deBlasio and the New York City Council include:

- at least $20,000 to pay for 2000 “free” coupons so people can “buy” fresh
- EBT/SNAP wireless equipment at every farm stand 
- Paid market manager at every farm stand
- Free food giveaways for those in need at every farm stand
- Edible garden support at or near every farm stand 
- Healthy cooking classes or tips at every farm stand
- Resources for those in need at every farm stand (i.e. EBT/SNAP, free city service info)
- Farmers Market Nutrition Program check acceptance and processing at every farmstand

PARTNERS AND LOCATIONS:

*PS 284 - Brownsville - led by Janie Sanders and Renee Cook 

*PS-IS 178 - Ocean Hill - Selema Fortune, Johnnymae Robinson

*Marge Matthews Community Garden, 13 Louis Place  - led by Deon Harris

*Totality Wellness - led by Stephanie Carnegie (Bed-Stuy, place to be determined)

*We Want to Eat into Wellness Farm Stand, 1585 Fulton, Pastor Sharmine Byrd 

*PS 38/Wyckoff Farm Stand -  Frances Angel, Althea McDonald and PS 38  

*Parkside Plaza - led by Flatbush/PLG partners  

*IS 240 + The Juicy Box - led by Seeds in the Middle  

Email for more information:  info@seedsinthemiddle.org  T: 862-701-3858

Contact us if you'd like to see a map of our markets.

Signers: Please note that the change.org site may ask for donations. Those donations will not go to our effort, so no need to donate anything. If you would like to donate, please donate to seedsinthemiddle.org