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On climate justice: Food insecurity is everyone's problem

Nearly half a million people in Minnesota lack regular access to food. In Ramsey County, 20% of children are considered food insecure, and seniors aged 60+ are the fastest-growing group of food shelf visitors.

Food insecurity is the consistent lack of access (either physically or economically) to enough food to lead an active, healthy life. It affects people of every age in Ramsey County. 

Many factors affect food security, such as poverty, racism or lack of access to food either because of distance to grocery stores or a lack of transportation. For example, some residents of Ramsey County live in food deserts and find it practically impossible to consistently make their way to get food due to bus schedules, location, or working schedule. This is being studied as a consequence of redlining (the segregating historical practices of banks) among other factors.  

The climate is another huge factor – it affects the production of food itself. Crop and livestock productivity are affected by: 

• Temperature. 

• Precipitation. 

• Soil health. 

• Access to clean water. 

• Growing season length. 

• Pests.  

• Drought. 

A drought is a period of time that is so unusually dry that the water cycle is significantly affected and the land itself dries up. Its impact on food production is enormous, since water and soil are the keys to good crops. The 18-month-long 2021 drought in Minnesota, for example, was our most severe drought since 1988. 

Despite a global food system, agriculture and food security are tied together in Minnesota. We know that buying local produce is good for the economy, our health, and the planet’s health, but we miss out on all this when drought harms Minnesota crops.  

What is Ramsey County doing to address food insecurity? 

Ramsey County's Food Security Coordinator, Carissa Dillon, works with community and local governments to increase food security in the county. Dillon was excited to say that “one specific effort Ramsey County will be working on in the future is expanding local urban agriculture efforts. This will help our soil absorb and hold moisture. The added green space will help decrease carbon dioxide, and community-grown foods will be available for people who need them.” Beyond this, Dillon and other Ramsey County employees have worked on: 

• Sharing information about food shelves or meal programs, farmers markets and affordable resources. 

• Providing funds to support food shelves and other types of food support efforts. 

• Partnering with existing efforts. 

• Building new relationships with community members and partners. 

• Analyzing county food security data to measure improvements. 

• Gathering the data into a food security assessment (summary). 

• Advocating for legislative, federal and local policies to support food insecure Ramsey County residents. 

• Expanding urban agriculture in Ramsey County to connect residents to food, improve soil and air quality and add more green space. 

 

This article is featured in Green Ramsey, an environmental health newsletter from Ramsey County.  
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