Tony and Dolly Ellis

by Ed Nicholson

A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned AgChat, the excellent Twitter discussion about food production  that occurs every Tuesday evening from 8-10 Eastern.  Once a month, the group uses the hashtag #foodchat to broaden the discussion beyond agriculture. 

This week's #Foodchat topic will be Food Insecurity.  If you're involved in hunger relief, your perspective is critical to this discussion.

This is a great opportunity for hunger advocates to communicate with a diversity of those interested in how our food is produced.  Past participants have included farmers of all kinds (dairy, meat, vegetable, fiber, local/organic, larger farms), advocates, corporate types, and more.   Most of us have a dog in the hunt. That's what makes it interesting.  It's a moderated discussion, so respect of fellow participants is demanded. 

The best way to join the discussion is to sign in to your Twitter account via a Webchat tool such as Tweetchat or Twubs.  When you sign in, use the hashtag #foodchat.  (If you've never used one of these tools, it's easy and safe; just go to the link and sign in)

Hope to see you there.

 

By Ed Nicholson

A lot of people know the statistics about hunger.  They sincerely believe something should be done.
They know it in their heads. A lot of people know enough to talk about it.  But they're not doing anything about it.
They just need to know it from the neck down  to really be motivated to do something.
The people who know the most about how hunger are those who know it in their stomachs.  The people who have actually experienced it in their lifetime. I can't lay claim to this experience, but some of the most inspiring people I've ever met can.
Then there are those who know it in their hearts. They've been touched by what they've seen up close and personal.  All the statistics, even well-told poignant stories don't deliver this experience.
Finally there are those who know it in their feet.  They walk the talk.  They get out and do. Most often they're the quiet, unsung heroes we refer to as Hunger All-Stars.
The solution to end hunger needs people who think and talk.  But it more desperately needs people who feel and walk.  

How can we more effectively move knowledge of hunger from peoples' heads into their hearts?
 

Photo:  LollyKnit--Creative Commons

By Ed Nicholson

I was privileged to be at a meeting last week with some of the best, brightest and most passionate people in hunger relief: NGOs, government  folks and highly-engaged corporate types.   It was inspiring and energizing. 
In a Q&A session with NGOs (Feeding America, Share Our Strength, Meals on Wheels and FRAC), I related the story about how many of our managers were in denial of  hunger being a significant challenge in their own communities.  I asked them if there was statistically valid research indicating peoples' awareness of the issue. 
The general consensus was that research indicated people are aware of hunger and that everybody believes something should be done.    
OK. But here's where it falls short with me:  I still don't believe a critical mass of people understand just how close to home hunger hits with them. They don't understand that almost anywhere and everywhere, there are kids going to school with their kids who go to bed hungry at night.  They don't know that there are senior citizens who have to make choices between medicine and food.  If they knew, they'd care. And if they cared, they'd be motivated to action.  We've seen great evidence of this.  

It's not that people are uncaring.  It's just they don't know enough to care. 

And that's a big reason there's hunger in a land of abundance.

By Ed Nicholson

Oh, if you're reading this, I imagine you care.  But you're not "them." 
It's not that we're an uncaring nation.  Think about what happened after 9-11 or Katrina.  People gave blood and dollars.  Donated time and talent. 
Why did they care about these things?
I think it was because these events hit close to home. It was so easy to think, "There but for the grace of God..." with every graphic image.
When we're given a reason to care, we can pour it on.
Hunger hasn't hit close to home with enough people.   They think it's something that happens in other communities, to other people--people they don' t know.  We know that's not the case.
I'm told there's research that indicates people care about hunger.  I believe that.  It's not that people couldn't care less about hunger.
It's that they need to care more.  They  need to care differently.

Tomorrow:  What do you know?

 

By Ed Nicholson

Why does hunger exist in the most innovative, resourceful country in the world--especially among those least able to help themselves, our children and our elderly?

I think I have an idea.

People either don't know about hunger, or they don't care about it.  If they both cared and knew, we'd have had the problem solved a long time ago. 

Obviously, that's a simple answer to a complex question. 

I've already written a couple of posts elaborating on the matter, which I'll put up here next week.

Meanwhile, be thinking about it.

 Photo:  Brainware3000 Creative Commons

 

By Ed Nicholson

Ever heard that?  I have.
My group's "day job" is working with managers in the 100 U.S. communities where Tyson Foods has significant operations to engage them in activities in their communities.  A central component of our strategy is to get them involved in hunger relief efforts.
Way too often we hear the opinion expressed from our folks that hunger is not a significant challenge in their communities.  Way too often it's from people who are quite caring, connected and involved in their communities.  The problem is simply that they're not connected to hunger.  When we're able to involve them with groups who can open their eyes to the hunger in their hometowns, they invariably become enthusiastic hunger fighters. Once they're engaged, they're also much more open to donating.
This is happening in communities all across America.  We desperately need people in these communities on our side in crafting sustainable solutions to hunger in our country. 
My point:  Unless the hunger community can come up with better ways to connect stakeholders--and connect them locally--we're going to be swimming upstream with all of the well-constructed strategies, hard work, and resources that are currently being committed to ending hunger.  As an example, if a Congressman's constituents don't believe hunger is a significant problem in their own community, how are you going to get them to prioritize resources toward hunger relief when education, healthcare, and infrastructure (not to mention tax reduction) are all clamoring for those same resources?  Most in Congress, though they like to think globally, consistently vote locally.  
The problem is, we're so close to the issue, we don't understand how others can't perceive its gravity.  We believe describing the problem will connect people.  As long as people believe hunger is something that doesn't exist in their own community, all the rational description in the world won't work.
What tactics do you use to educate and engage stakeholders?
 

 

By Ed Nicholson                                                       

Let's say you're a journalist granted an exclusive interview with a hunger thought leader.  Say,  Share Our Strength founder and executive director, Billy Shore;  co-chair of the Senate Hunger Caucus, Blanche Lincoln;  Feeding America CEO, Vicki Escarra;  U.N.  F.A.O. Ambassador Tony Hall;  or Bread for the World president, David Beckmann.

You have five minutes tor your interview.  What questions would you ask?

   photo by Duchamp, Creative Commons

 

Ed Nicholson
 
Why should anyone pay any attention to this photo? Isn't it just another "PR" event?
Community leaders, elected officials, corporate leaders, food bank leaders. 
Talking to media (and each other) about why the issue of hunger needs to be addressed.
 

I submit that the single biggest challenge those passionate about hunger face is getting other people engaged.

When you get important people out talking about hunger, other important people listen. And perhaps they get involved.

The backstory
At Tyson, a key component of our hunger strategy is to bring as many of our stakeholders as possible into the issue of hunger.  Each year, we sponsor Fall Football Classics with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU).  These are tremendous events, involving phenomenally influential people in the communities in which they occur (see below).  For the past five years, we've done food donation events in conjunction with this sponsorship, to which we've invited key Classic participants.  They've readily and eagerly participated.  This one's in Memphis--see details below.  If we can get these folks engaged in hunger in their communities, the impact will be so much more than the truckload of food we donate.

Do you have strategies to engage your stakeholders?  We'd love to hear about them.  Please comment.

The Photo
Tyson Foods donates 35K lbs of food to the Memphis Mid-South Food Bank in honor of the Southern Heritage Classic.
l. to r.
Susan Sanford, Executive Director, Mid-South Food Bank
(speaking) Fred Jones – Founder and Producer of the Southern Heritage Classic
Gwendolyn J. Tucker – Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mid-South Food Bank
Libby Lawson – Vice-President of Media & Community Relations, Tyson Foods, Inc.
Chairman Harold B. Collins – Chairman and Councilman, District 3 on the Memphis City Council
Myron Lowery – Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Memphis
 

 

                                                                                             Photo: wsilver, Creative Commons

By Ed Nicholson

I work with a phenomenal group here at Tyson.  Over the years, they've become incredibly passionate about hunger, and have taken "ownership" of promoting the company's engagement in the issue.  Sometimes we're so proud of our management of it, that we hold on to it a little too tightly.
Kind of like a kid squeezing a new puppy too tightly.  Sometimes you risk loving it to death.
We ocassionally have other groups in Tyson come to us with ideas of how we can do this hunger thing.  Sometimes our initial tendency is to say, "Who do they think they are?! We're the subject matter experts here! We've already thought of that. They should go back to doing what they do best and leave the hunger program to us!" 
But the fact is, if we're ever going to achieve our goal of having the the whole company engaged and involved, we have to give up some of our control.  We have to let others' ideas in, even if they initially don't seem like great ideas. 
Because if we don't give up some ownership, it will be all ours.  And the challenge of hunger is big enough that everyone can and should own a piece of it.

 

This weekend's harvest from my garden

By Ed Nicholson

I grew up on a farm and around vegetable gardens.  I’ve had a garden myself most of my adult life. This year, with the exception of a little Miracle Grow fertilizer on the tomatoes, I’ve gone mostly organic.  While the squash bugs and late blight are taking a toll on production, it’s still a good year.
And although I freeze and can quite a bit, even in a good year,  I couldn’t come close to feeding my family out of my garden. 
Which brings me to my point:  I think the trend toward locally-grown, organic, CSAs and community gardens is fantastic. I sincerely do. Like Guy Clark said, “What’d life be without homegrown tomatoes?”  If I ruled the world, much of the water and fertilizer that goes into making lush green carpets around our homes and in our communities would go into making food in the same space.
However (and granting I have a dog in the hunt), I think the trend toward extolling the virtues of locally-produced food using the tactic of demonizing modern agricultural practices is counterproductive and potentially dangerous. 
I was particularly impressed by Missouri farmer, Blake Hurst’s thoughtful and articulate response to the trend toward trashing modern farming in his piece,  The Omnivore’s Delusion.  You might consider reading it before you form an opinion after seeing Food Inc.
We have a billion hungry people in this world,  many of whom live in climates or locales for which local, organic and heirloom are literally impossible. How are we going to feed them without drought-resistant maize and soybeans, or frost-resistant wheat?  And if we can grow a chicken with six pounds of corn, rather than twelve, well…   As Dr. Jeffrey Sachs states in this video, if we don’t get the hungry fed, our world faces continued political instability.   And in a world with shakily-secured nuclear and chemical arsenals, those risks are as daunting as global warming and ocean eutrophication.
Local and organic,  and modern and efficient need not be mutually exclusive. We can live in a world that has locally-produced food for those of us with the ways and means, while feeding the rest of a hungry planet with modern agricultural techniques.  There’s a place for both.
And if you’re ever in northwest Arkansas in late July, come by and see me.  I always seem to have extra squash.

By the way, if you're a Twitter user, think about tuning in to  #agchat on Tuesday evenings, moderated by Michele Payn-Knoper.  It's a lively discussion of issues related to food and fiber production.