In The News
How To Church A Garden Into A Garden
Our current food system is propped up by... plantation economics and has a deep legacy of enslavement and oppression. There's little that can be done to completely reform and change that system, and for me, little motivation to dedicate the few years I have on this earth to trying to change such a gargantuan system that has been oppressive for centuries. What I’d like to do is co-create alternative micro food systems, not just because of the racism and the oppression in the current food system, but also because of the impending challenges around climate change, the growing concerns around geopolitics, and COVID-19, which showed us how fragile our current food system is.
Black Churches, Powerful Cultural Forces, Set Their Sights on Food Security
The Baltimore-based Black Church Food Security Network is building a community-centered food system to combat ‘food apartheid' by connecting Black farmers with historically African-American churches.
Can the church use faith to influence eating and exercise?
Baltimore restaurateur John Shields joins Dan for a conversation with the Rev. Heber Brown III, pastor at Pleasant Hope Baptist Church, about the Black Church Food Security Network. This is an effort to use churches to influence their members to not only eat healthier foods, but to eat what they grow or what African-American farmers grow.
Rev. Dr. Brown Guest on National Television
Rev. Dr. Heber Brown, III was a guest on MSNBC's The Beat with Ari Melber highlighting the work of African American farmers.
Black network’s farm-to-church movement brings fresh food to Baltimore
After waving his black handkerchief and preaching a passionate sermon about Doubting Thomas, the apostle who initially refused to believe in Jesus’ resurrection, the Rev. Heber Brown III sat in the study of his Baptist church, switched gears and started talking with conviction about eggs.
And not just any eggs. Free-range eggs that he had ferried up Interstate 95 the previous day to extend the work of his Black Church Food Security Network.
Change Maker & Risk Taker: Heber Brown
The Forum for Theological Exploration spotlighted Rev. Dr. Heber Brown, III as one of the innovative religious leaders in the country.
How “Greens, Beets, and Tomatoes” Turned Around This Historically Black Church
A few years ago, the Rev. Dr. Heber Brown III, the pastor of Baltimore’s historically African American Pleasant Hope Baptist Church, noticed a problem in his congregation: Many of the members were suffering from diet-related diseases. The problem is larger than just Pleasant Hope: About 13 percent of African American adults have diabetes, and an astonishing 40 percent experience high blood pressure.
Brown knew his community needed healthier food, but fresh produce was too expensive.