July 28th 2023.
Tiffany Haddish is on a mission to combat food insecurity and has announced plans to open her own grocery store. The Crenshaw-based store will be called Diaspora Groceries and will offer sustainable food from quality local vendors.
Haddish told The Washington Post, “There will be specialty things and a normal market and a nonprofit-like educational component, where people can take cooking classes and a financial literacy class. I’m a firm believer that once you understand how money works, once you understand how food works, you become a healthier, happier human being. And when you’re healthier and happier, the family’s healthier and happier, and the community’s healthier and happier.”
The store is looking to raise $25 million and recruit products from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color for its shelves. There’s also a community survey looking for suggestions from locals on who they want to see represented in the store.
Haddish has been open about her own experience with food insecurity and how it has affected her life. She told Essence, “Food insecurity is a real thing for me. Something I’ve experienced the majority of my existence.”
Haddish was working with the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation at the time and shared why the initiative was so important to her. “When I was homeless, I used to eat off of people’s pomegranate, passion fruit and orange trees. I’ve noticed within the last 15 years, at least in my hood anyways, all of these fruit trees have disappeared. They cut them all down. There used to be fruit trees all up and down the street. There’s no access. It’s like where’s the fruit? Where is the free food?”
Through Diaspora Groceries, Haddish is hoping to provide access to healthy and affordable food for communities of color. The store will not only offer food, but also cooking and financial management lessons for customers. With her help, people can become healthier and happier, which will contribute to a healthier and happier community.
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