RGV Food Summit

To Celebrate Food Culture and Agricultural History

STORY AND PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE KASPER

The history of food and agriculture in the Rio Grande Valley is as rich in productivity and culture as it is packed with contradictions.

How is the same region that produces more fruits and vegetables than any other area in Texas also one of the state’s hungriest communities?

Who benefits from the nutritious foods grown from our soils by our farmworkers, if not our people, who have some of the highest rates of diet-related chronic conditions in the country?

What would a food system in the Valley look like that is more just, equitable and sustainable for all?

Energy and effort to address these questions are bubbling throughout the region. Small farms are emerging. Organizations like the Sentli Center for Regenerative Agriculture in Edinburg, HOPE for Small Farm Sustainability in Harlingen, the Brownsville Wellness Coalition and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) all are training people in the art, science and business of sustainable food production. School districts like Mission and Pharr-San Juan-Alamo along with IDEA Public Schools are adding sustainable agriculture production and content to their campuses and curriculum.

This movement has deep roots in the history of agricultural resistance in the Valley, from the 1966 Starr County melon strike and 1979 Raymondville onion strike to ongoing farmworker organizing and initiatives by La Unión Del Pueblo Entero (LUPE) today.

Each of these agricultural actors has a vision of a just Valley food system they are working to bring to fruition. The wisdom is already here in our community though sometimes slowed by our isolated efforts and hindered by bureaucratic obstacles.

To help sidestep these obstacles, with funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Dr. Alexis Racelis, program director of UTRGV’s Agroecology Program, and Hernán Colmenero, founder and CEO of the Institute for Ecology, Scholarship, and Health, have formed an Equitable Food Systems Advisory Committee. This committee of diverse community stakeholders has a Food Summit planned to celebrate food culture and agricultural history in the

Tomato tasting at Hub for Prosperity

Valley and imagine pathways forward to a food system that serves all.

The Food Summit, hosted by UTRGV’s Agroecology Program and Office of Sustainability, will take place during UTRGV’s annual Earth Fest, April 17 to 21, 2023. Events will be held at the Edinburg and Brownsville campuses, with in-person and virtual options for participants.

Activities will include movie screenings, presentations from food visionaries and conversations about food justice, institutional food procurement, local agricultural history, economic prosperity and other related topics.

“We want to leverage the wealth around food culture and agriculture in our community through this summit, and bring together diverse ideas and expertise around prosperity for our community,” Racelis says. “Ultimately, these conversations will help inform and develop a Rio Grande Valley Food Charter, a guiding document that will state common goals and shared values for our regional food system.”

Racelis says agriculture and food are key elements of Valley identity. “We know that these conversations are painful at times and have not been inclusive of diverse voices or discussed in a public way,” he adds. “This food summit aims for an open, inclusive and transparent goal-setting process that brings farmers, food distributors, educators, academics, activists, artists and consumers together with policymakers and government agencies that can provide follow-through for a shared vision.”

Event organizer Colmenero says the Valley has many assets that give it the potential for a strong, resilient food system that benefits all. “Our region has strong agricultural productivity and cultural legacy,” he says. “But there is a gap between production and our community that leads to public health problems, economic disparities and environmental issues.”

Among these difficulties, the RGV experiences high rates of diet-related diabetes and heart disease, family farmers who struggle to compete against the efficiencies of large corporations and continued loss of Native and agricultural lands to urban expansion.

“The food summit conversations can be a catalyst to bring stakeholders together, elevating our already strong food culture and moving forward with intention to address issues of equity around food,” says Colmenero.

More details about the Food Summit, schedule and locations are available at rgvagroecology.com.

Food Summit

• Hosted by UTRGV’s Agroecology Program and Office of Sustainability

• Make sure your voice, expertise and wisdom are included in this collective vision for the future of our region’s food system.

• Mark your calendars for April 17 to 21, and join the festivities. Visit rgvagroecology.com.