Sustaining the economy with the Local Food Drive

Happy fall, Sustainers.

You may have noticed some strange things around campus this week. Did you think you saw an egg running around Brady Fountain, or a pea-pod breakdancing outside Memorial Union? It's that time of year again, the local food drive.

Here's how it works, in three steps:

Step one: People on campus donate money (we love spare change!) during this week.
Step two: We use the money to buy fresh produce from local farmers (within 50 miles of Columbia)
Step three: We donate the food to the Central Missouri Food Bank throughout the year

In the past, Sustain Mizzou and it's partner organizations have raised around $3000 each year. That's a good chunk of change for wearing a costume around campus for a week teaching people about sustainable food.

The three best things about the food drive:

It helps hungry people be healthier. Food banks tend to rely on non-perishable foods, which are often less nutritious than fresh fruits, veggies, eggs, and meat.

It helps family farms. Food drive representatives set up contracts for local, often organic, farmers so they can adjust their production to meet the needs of the food bank.

It helps the economy. Healthier people are more productive, and putting money into the pockets of farmers almost guarantees it's going to get put back into the Missouri economy.

Oh yeah, and of course, it helps the environment. Most food travels hundreds of miles to get to your table, wasting gasoline, undergoing chemical treatments, and often after having been grown in a non-so-sustainable way. This eliminates excess pollution and land misuse.

So this week, if you see an apple (or is it a tomato?) running around campus, check your pockets and see if you've got a couple coins to make mid-Missouri a happier place to eat.