Effort to create community kitchens selling fresh food in Detroit is on

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The Brightmoor section of Detroit is on a mission to get healthy.

It is located in what's considered a "food desert." The closest grocery store is nearly two miles away and many have limited access to transportation to get there.

"So our children are used to getting food from the local liquor store and that ends up being red hot Cheetos and red pop," said Riet Schumack of Neighbors Building Brightmoor.

But community leaders have taken efforts to change that, starting with community gardening.

"When we first came here in 2006 there were no gardens," said Schumack. "Now we have 30 plus gardens that produce all sorts of fresh food."

But community leaders say their efforts can't stop there if they want to be successful.

So up next, a community kitchen where local farmers can sell their fresh produce at lower prices and residents can learn how to fix healthy meals.

"We will have a place for farmers to store veggies," Schumack said. "A place for farmers and others can produce value added products to develop local economy, we'll have a big meeting room where we will provide cooking lessons and nutritional education. And then (we'll have) a cafe for a meeting space and an alternative to junk food."

One Brightmoor resident says the community kitchen will help her provide nutritious meals for her family without breaking the bank.

"There's a lot of farmers in neighborhood so it enables them to sell produce at reasonable rates," said resident Lisa Rivera. "And also being lower income neighborhood and lower income family we'll be able to afford it."

Organizers say they still need money to bring this building up to code and they are calling on the public for help.

"If we get 30,000 from a Patronicity it will be matched with another 30,000 from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation," said Schumack. "And we will have 60,000 and kitchen could be opened by spring."

Organizers need to raise 30,000 dollars by Jan. 12 to get the matching funds.

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