Protein and Fresh Vegetables Year Round
Pat and Chris are interested in greenhouse technologies in order to offer their clients a year round supply of food. Here are some of the findings from their research. People eating on a budget, or living in a food desert*, are typically missing protein and fresh vegetables from their diet. This is particularly true during the winter in temperate zones and particularly for those without access to space to grow their own vegetables (or who don't use the space they have). In order to avoid going hungry when money is scarce people concentrate on starches that keep well and are relatively inexpensive such as pasta, rice, beans and potatoes. For those in a food desert, prepared foods at convenience stores using "snap"** benefits may be the only reasonable choice for food. Both approaches are missing the nutrition provided by proteins and fresh vegetables. If we can build a space that will not freeze over the winter, we can grow fresh greens year round for...