[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 53 (Tuesday, April 12, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H2579]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      RECOGNIZING HOME FARMING DAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. BIGGERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Home Farming 
Day, an initiative launched by the nonprofit organization Urban Farming 
in partnership with the Kraft Foods Triscuit brand. The event 
celebrates those who are growing food at home or with their communities 
and, in turn, nurturing and inspiring healthier eating habits 
nationwide.
  Last year, the first Home Farming Day resulted in the planting of 50 
new farms in unused urban spaces in 20 cities. I was pleased that my 
office could participate in the groundbreaking on one of those gardens 
in my congressional district.
  This year, Triscuits and Urban Farming plan to replant all 50 gardens 
and add 15 new farms throughout the country, totaling 65 community-
based home farms. Food grown at these community farms goes directly to 
the volunteers who grow the crops, along with their families and 
communities. Volunteers can also donate to local food banks for those 
that are in need.
  In my home district, crops are delivered to the Loaves and Fishes 
Community Pantry in Naperville, Illinois, where they provide low-income 
families with fresh, healthy meals.

                              {time}  1220

  Mr. Speaker, from the White House to our own backyards and 
windowsills, more and more Americans are taking up the fun and healthy 
pastime of growing their own food. It is not unlike what many of our 
parents and grandparents did during World War II when they planted 20 
million ``victory gardens.'' I can recall stealing into my own mother's 
victory garden to eat the raspberries and gather crops of rhubarb, 
squash, and tomatoes.
  In fact, home gardening already is an activity that most Americans 
enjoy. A 2010 Garden Writers Association survey found that 66 percent 
of Americans have some form of lawn or garden, and younger Americans 
between the ages of 25 and 40 are now gardening at the same rate as the 
general population. And Home Farming Day is an opportunity to encourage 
that trend, especially among young people in urban communities where 
fresh fruits and vegetables may be less available.
  Whether on a kitchen countertop, in a balcony flower box, or at a 
community plot, home farming is a great way for people of all ages to 
celebrate natural living, and treat themselves to some fresh fruits and 
vegetables while they're at it.
  It is a goal worth pursuing, and I'd like to commend Triscuit, the 
109-year-old cracker brand manufactured in my congressional district, 
and the home farming movement for helping to show Americans how easy it 
is to grow fresh vegetables and herbs right in their own backyard.
  I'd like to congratulate Urban Farming and their partners on their 
success in expanding Home Farming Day across the country, encouraging 
communities to utilize open spaces to bring fresh ingredients to our 
homes.

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