Breakdowns in Today’s (Fresh) Food Systems

SOCIAL

Rising Food Insecurity
Up from 12.8 percent to 13.5 percent of U.S. households (2022-23)

Public Health Issues
Diet related diseases, food deserts (limited fresh foods), food safety outbreaks, pesticide residues, PFAS chemicals, contaminated water

Farmworker Health Issues
Pesticide poisoning, chronic illnesses, respiratory issues, 2x suicide rates

BIPOC Farmer Systemic Barriers 
E.g., land access, credit/loan access, lower generational capital, language and network barriers, underrepresentation in policy-making

Lack of Consumer Awareness
Consumers lack understanding of food's full economic health/nutrition and environmental implications leading to suboptimal individual and system choices

ECONOMIC

Concentration & Lack of Resilience
Less than four food companies dominate 80 percent of the U.S. food supply leading to less competition, less consumer choice, less crop diversity, price volatility, imbalanced policy influence, and less resilience to shocks, e.a., climate labor, imports, pandemics, crop disease

Small-Mid Farmer Economics
These farmers make an average of 15 cents on the consumer dollar, or $25-35K gross revenue/acre, struggle to make ends meet, and are going out of business - large farms ($1M+) account for 85 percent of CA agricultural sales

High Food Waste
30-40 percent U.S. food supply is wasted (20-30 percent at farm level, 10-12 percent in retail/distribution, 10-15 percent at consumer level) - 5160B estimated annual cost

High Transportation Costs & Distances
Typical farm items travel 1500 miles farm to plate; U.S. food transportation costs -$250B

Overproduced Subsidized Crops
40-50 percent of U.S. cropland is used to grow animal feed (corn, soy): 20-30 percent in CA cropland (primarily alfalfa)

ENVIRONMENTAL

Pollution
Fertilizer and pesticide runoffs, water impairment and contamination, air pollution 

Climate Change Impacts
Crop risks from rising temperatures, heat waves, droughts, storms, floods and wildfires

Greenhouse Gas Emissions
16 percent livestock/grazing, 4 percent crop farmland, 5-10 percent food waste, plus indirect emissions from packaging, refrigeration, processing, transport

Soil Degradation
Soil erosion, loss of fertility, desertification

Groundwater Depletion
CA agriculture accounts for 40 percent of state's total water use (80 percent of developed water)

Biodiversity Loss
Pollinator decline, soil biodiversity decline, plant species decline, fish species decline