Fair Food review

I just finished reading Fair Food by Oren B. Hesterman.   This is a pretty good read which does more than many popular titles about food system reform to stress the social equity dimension.

I was surprised that with all the interest around here there was only one copy in the Sonoma County Library system.   Maybe because this is less that a purist treatment?   Hesterman seems intent on restoring balance to the food system, not eliminating large scale production of commodity crops.  Speaking of our food system he says:

On the continuum between specialization and diversification, we have veered too far toward the specialization side.  We are similarly out of balance on the continua of centralization-decentralization, concentration-dispersion, and globalization-localization.

The book generated some interesting questions for me, and provided some useful definitions.  Good section on the Farm Bill.   There is also an extensive resource section, topically organized and annotated.   

On the related website http://www.fairfoodnetwork.org/  the resources are organized in a searchable way.   You plug in a key word or two, your state if you wish, and the area of interest.   Maybe my searching was a little lacking, but I couldn't find anything on a topic the book made me think about.   When we talk about farm to institution - why don't we mention jails and prisons?   Just think if their purchasing power were increased and turned toward the local agricultural economy wherever they are...