Catamount Tavern News Service, Burlington, VT- Hunger is a serious problem worldwide and locally in the Green Mountains. Anyone who says otherwise is ignoring the facts. According to the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger, 70,600 individuals in Vermont, including 19,000 children, are “food insecure” (vtnohunger.org). Many households and individuals, while having access to some form of food, do not have access to nutritious food. Think about this for a minute.

Now, go to your local Hannaford’s or other supermarket, or any restaurant, and check out the dumpster. What do you see? Most likely, especially if you live in Burlington, you see a bountiful garden of produce that, while not acceptable to the paying customer, is perfectly nutritious and safe to eat.

While policy makers may take years to realize that there is a simple solution to hunger problems in Vermont, a group of dedicated individuals-students, farmers, artists and other community members-have gotten together to help out their community members in need.

Acting under Food Not Bombs International, a group founded in the 80s in Cambridge, MA around protests at the Seabrook Nuclear Power Plant, these activists get together every Saturday night to turn a friends kitchen into a scene familiar to anyone who has spent time in a commercial kitchen: food scraps everywhere, even more food, chopping, stirring, mixing, hot ovens, and good conversation. What is being cooked? Salvaged food donated from City Market, the local food co-op, Digger’s Mirth and Pitchfork farms, Boloco restaurant, and, of course, the friendly Hannaford’s compost.

“We are an anti-authoritarian, non-violent disorganization,” says Amy Doolittle, one of the founding members of Food Not Bombs in Burlington. “We are people helping people.”

Food Not Bombs, which has been largely associated with anarchists in the past, operates under consensus: what few decisions that need to be made are agreed upon by everyone, or the group does not move forward. Operating with little to no funding (outside of the occasional donation) and no permits, Food Not Bombs is standing up to the military industrial complex and bureaucracy that many people feel so entrapped by. “We are saying ‘we don’t need your money’ says Kylie Vanerstrom, a student and dedicated FNBer, “Politicians can fund billion dollar a day wars, but they can’t feed the people. This is a failure of democracy.”

While the group has received an outpouring of community support, the authorities do not embrace FNB as openly. They have been threatened with shutdowns multiple times, reasons varying from violation of municipal permit codes to attracting too many homeless people. However, the members assert their right to serve free food, and are currently discussing the issue with the District Attorney and the Mayor’s office. “We may move for the winter, but we will not go away,” says Doolittle.

Food Not Bombs serves a free, hot vegetarian meal every Sunday at 1 p.m. in City Hall Park, Burlington, VT. Food Not Bombs is also available for large events such as protests and other non-violent actions, celebrations or other events.

*Contact Burlington Food Not Bombs via email at: wbenning (at) uvm.edu

[Note from CT News: It seems a travesty that such a group should be faced with legal hurdles and harassment by city officials and police given the fact that the Major of Burlington as well as many City Councilors are members of the Progressive Party. CT News implores the Mayor, Bob Kiss, and the City Council to do the right thing and publically support the efforts of Food Not Bombs.]