Duvall Loves Local

Last week Duvall came out to support Lowcountry Local First’s Femivore event. What is a femivore you might ask? The Lowcountry Local First brochure defined a femivore as a “woman who has a deep passion for the local food community”. A recent article in the New York Times Magazine described the femivore movement in saying “the omnivore’s dilemma has provided an unexpected out from the feminist predicament, a way for women to embrace homemaking without becoming Betty Draper.”

The event featured four inspiring and inspired women with ideas on how to improve our local food systems and inequalities. Each woman presented her case based on four categories: Nourish, Grow, Inspire, and Give. The attendees voted for their favorite business plan of the night. The winner received 2000 dollars to jump-start their activism.

-Meet the Femivores-

NOURISH: Germaine Jenkins- Urban Veggucation (Winner)

A for-profit edible landscaping and chicken coop service in North Charleston. Ms. Jenkins spent the last four years volunteering in a school garden and she hopes to increase awareness and interest in green business in minority and low income neighborhoods. The project will “improve access to locally grown fresh produce by growing food where [it] will be consumed. Our mission is to transform underutilized spaces using sustainable urban agriculture, turn local food and landscape waste into soil and transform an inner city food desert into a sustainable hub of green economy.”

GROW: Meg Moore- CSA, James Island Farmer’s Market

Ms. Moore is the owner and grower at Dirthugger Farm on James Island. She grows heirloom varieties of vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs. She hopes to build an eco-friendly cooler for her produce, a small greenhouse and jump start the construction of an eco-friendly Tumbleweed home.

INSPIRE: Rebecca Preston Burke- Locavore Lawyer

Ms. Burke is the founding attorney of the Locavore Lawyer in Charleston. She would like to “provide local food entrepreneurs and small farmers with the legal and business advice they need to be successful in the Lowcountry at an affordable rate” by providing one-on-one counseling as well as relevant workshops dealing with legislation and how to be a socially responsible and successful business.

GIVE: Darlena Goodwin- Children’s Garden Project- Mini-Farmer’s Markets

Ms. Goodwin works in the Charleston community to prevent childhood obesity and health issues by teaching children in poor communities how to grow and cook their own food. In order to “bridge the disconnect that exists between the health and nutrition education that [is fostered] in schools and the lack of nutrition received [at home]” Ms. Goodwin proposed mini-farmers markets in Title One school gardens (schools with economically disadvantaged children). The school gardens would allow students to bring a grocery list to school, purchase fresh produce and bring it home along with recipes. She hopes that the project would bring “nutrition to the families where lack of transportation and neighborhood supermarkets is an inhibitor” to fresh and healthy food.

Duvall has been a longtime ally of Lowcountry Local First because we believe supporting our local food economy yields higher quality food and supports small businesses in the Lowcountry area. When asked why Duvall is a supporter of movements like this, Steve Wenger (CEO of Duvall) replied, “Because it’s the right thing to do.”

Tell us your story of how you support your local food economy and stay tuned for future Lowcountry Local First events.