02/08/2013
Frustrated by lack of progress in the obesity fight, one of the nation's richest health charities will pay to build better stores and buy greener groceries itself, if it has to.
The Colorado Health Foundation has set aside $7.1 million for a loan-and-grant fund aimed at grocery stores and retail developers that need a subsidy to supply more nutritious goods in "food deserts."
From the Cincinnati Enquirer
January 31, 2013 -- The effort to provide consistent sources of fresh fruit and vegetables to the residents of Avondale and other Cincinnati neighborhoods lacking grocery stores has received a substantial boost.
The Center for Closing the Health Gap received a $150,000, two-year grant from the Greater Cincinnati Foundation to support the Do Right! Healthy Corner Store Network Initiative. It is the first local foundation to award a grant to address food deserts in Cincinnati – the lack of a grocery store as a consistent source of fresh fruit and vegetables.
From the New York Times
December 18, 2012 -- Mark Bittman's op-ed on the need for dietary seat belts.
"Philadelphia hasn’t allowed soda or sugary drinks in vending machines in schools since 2004, and its schools no longer have deep-fryers; the Food Trust (as I wrote in 2011) has pushed healthier food in corner stores. And New York has, among other things, banned trans fats from restaurants, made it easier for low-income people to shop at farmers’ markets and run a highly visible ad campaign that tells subway riders, for example, the number of miles they’d have to walk to account for that sugary drink.
Like Philadelphia, New York has come close to passing a soda tax, which has raised consciousness about the dangers of sugary drinks. The so-called Big Gulp Ban (which will not, sadly, affect actual Big Gulps) will be implemented in March; if it hangs around, New York’s obesity statistics may slide even further below the national average before too long.
These are dietary seat belts, and seat belts save lives. And only a jerk would say: “It’s a slippery slope toward telling me what to do. If I want to ride without a seat belt, it’s my right!”"
From Philebrity
Philadelphians voted Night Market as Festival/Gathering of the Year!
From Huffington Post
October 10, 2012 -- The Food Trust's executive director Yael Lehmann along with Partnership for a Healthier America's Larry Soler wrote an op-ed on how Philadelphia's comprehensive approach to obesity prevention may be a model to help curtail the complex problem of obesity.
From Newsworks
September 18, 2012 -- Philadelphia was lauded for lowering obesity rates in public school children through a decade-long collaboration with The Food Trust. Black male students and Hispanic female students, two groups that had significantly higher obesity rates, have seen the greatest improvements.
From USDA Blog
August 17, 2012 -- Joani Walsh, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs commends The Food Trust's farmers' market program.
"Pennsylvania is among the country's top ten states represented in the USDA's National Farmers Market Directory. I recently completed a trip through the Fruit Belt to the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia to see how USDA's support of farmers market development is impacting communities and helping farmers across the Keystone State.
"Clark Park and The Food Trust, which operates 26 markets in Philadelphia, both play a critical role in the city's initiative to expand access to healthy food while also expanding economic opportunities for area farmers."
From Inquirer
August 13, 2012 -- The Philadelphia Inquirer reports on USDA deputy undersecretary Joani Walsh's visit to The Food Trust's Clark Park farmers' market.
""We've been paying a lot of attention to Philadelphia for quite some time. It's really exciting," Walsh said. "Philly's just really been out in front with some groundbreaking work."
Philadelphians have increased access to farmers' markets in the last few years, Walsh said, and that has led the way for the rest of the country."