In Iowa and elsewhere, racial injustice has a long, deep history within the entire food system, from farm to table. Some notable examples include:
- White Americans own about 98% of farmland—land that was colonized and stolen from Indigenous peoples.
- Less than 2% of American farmers are black. Less than 1% of U.S. farmland is black-owned. Post-Civil War through the present, racist public policies, historic denial of loans and subsidies and more subtle forms of discrimination have stolen black-owned land and perpetuated low profits among black farmers.
- The majority of farm workers are people of color–mainly Latinx immigrants– who often work in extremely oppressive conditions. The Coalition of Immokalle Workers, a leading farm workers advocacy group, has helped free over 1,200 U.S. farm workers held against their will in the equivalent of modern day slavery.
- According to The Color of Food Study, food workers of color receive on average 77% of the already-low wages of white food workers, with women of color making considerably less. While these workers prepare and serve food for others, they often struggle to feed their own families.
- Most workers in the animal slaughtering and processing industry are Hispanic or black, working under highly unsafe conditions worsened by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Center for Economic and Policy Research.
- According to Feeding America, the rate of African American households facing hunger is over twice that of white, non-Hispanic households. One in four black children consistently struggle to get enough to eat.
Field to Family has always worked toward a fairer and more just community food system, meeting people where they eat to increase access and inclusion. We recognize that a vast amount of work must be done to realize justice of all kinds in Iowa’s food system and beyond.
Field to Family’s Statement on Racial Justice
As an organization dedicated to advancing local, healthy and sustainable food systems, we understand that racial justice and food justice are intertwined. We believe black lives matter. We stand in solidarity against all acts of racism and all injustices impacting the lives of people of color. Field to Family’s goal of creating an equitable food system that enhances our community health will require dismantling the many ways racism has shaped how people grow, eat and access food in our region and in this country. This means building a system that includes protections for farmers and farm workers, our environment and our community.
Many of our partners in advancing our community food system –from local farms to food pantries–hold social justice, food justice and racial justice as core values. That’s part of what makes the Eastern Iowa local food community so special and worth supporting.
Those seeking to learn more about how food justice intersects with racial justice, take action or donate to organizations supporting food justice for BIPOC can consider starting with the following resources:
- Explore this toolset from Racial Equity Tools providing a thorough collection of research, resources and practices.
- Get some more background on dismantling food systems racism from Food First.
- Learn more about historic struggle of black farmers from the National Black Farmers Association.
- Participate in the next “21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge“ from Food Solutions.
- Buy from BIPOC farmers in your area. Online Farmers Market vendors Garden Oasis LLC and Red Earth Gardens are two examples of a BIPOC-owned farms in eastern Iowa committed to empowering community members through local, sustainably grown food.
- Donate to Proteus, an Iowa-based organization providing affordable, accessible healthcare to Iowa’s farm worker community
- Check out this national list of food justice organizations from Civil Eats and consider donating time or funds.