- The department is collaborating with UMMC, the state Medical Association, and local hospitals to help Mississippians understand the importance of healthy eating habits.
The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce on Thursday kicked off an initiative to make Mississippians aware of healthy eating options and the importance of the state’s farming sector.
During a stop at the Mississippi Farmer’s Market in Jackson, Ag Commissioner Andy Gipson (R) said the initiative mirrors the Make America Healthy Again Executive Order signed by President Donald Trump (R) in February.
Gipson told a crowd of shoppers and vendors that Mississippi, the second unhealthiest state in the U.S. behind West Virginia, has seen the ills of bad eating habits. It is estimated that 40 percent of Mississippians are obese. The state has a significant population with diabetes, high blood pressure, a variety of health issues and other illnesses associated with unhealthy diets.
“If you eat unhealthy foods, you feel unhealthy,” Gipson said. “If you eat healthy foods, you feel healthy.”
To kick off the Make Mississippi Healthy Again campaign, Gipson is visiting several of the state’s 72 farmers’ markets and dozens of more farms, highlighting the Magnolia State’s leading industry.
Farmers’ markets, the Commissioner said, are win-wins for the state. Farmers can sell their products, and families are able to purchase “fresh, safe, and affordable foods.” Additionally, he added, the food is locally sourced.
“We love to promote fresh food, because when we do, it has an impact on our farmers,” Gipson said.
With Mississippi placing so low in the national health rankings, the Commissioner said attitudes towards healthy food will need to change, but he believes that change is possible.
“Change begins at home,” Gipson said, noting that fresh food is a better way to feed a family.
Another challenge to getting families to eat more leafy greens and fresh foods is the cost. Gipson said healthy food at farmers’ markets is not more expensive than food at the grocery store.
“When you buy directly from a farmers’ market or a farmer, you are not paying the state’s 7 percent sales tax. There’s zero sales tax when buying from a farmer,” he said. “What family in Mississippi thinks saving 7 percent isn’t a big deal? It is for my family.”
During Thursday’s farmers’ market, scores of people were examining homegrown tomatoes, thumping watermelons, smelling peaches, and talking about squash recipes.
One shopper was Canton resident Melva Chafee, a seventy-something grandmother who explained that shopping at a farmers’ market is better than shopping at a grocery store because of the fresh vegetables.
“We love to shop here. We are spending money, money we don’t have,” she said jokingly.
As part of the healthy eating campaign, the Ag Department has created a website, MakeMSHealthyAgain.com, with farmers’ market locations, profiles of healthy food producers, and more.
The campaign is collaborating with the University of Mississippi Medical Center, the state’s Medical Association, local hospitals and clinics, and diabetes experts to help Mississippians understand the importance of healthy eating habits.
Daniel Tyson
