August 2006

A group of neighbors stood chatting by the side of the road in a leafy park in West Oakland, California. Though this is one of the poorest parts of the San Francisco Bay Area, a scene soon unfolded that calls to mind a happy yesteryear of milk delivery and Good Humor men: a boxy van turned down Poplar Street towards the group, who moved expectantly to the curb. But there’s a modern twist: hip hop beats thumped from the orange and purple van’s solar-powered speaker system. Graffiti-style lettering on the side announced “Fresh Produce! Natural Foods!”

This funky van is the Mobile Market, the most visible part of People’s Grocery, a young organization that believes food is the key to the future of West Oakland. The biodiesel-fueled van is cleverly designed so that, when it’s parked by the side of the road with its ramp extended, it is a fully-stocked but very tiny natural foods store. Sumptuous organic produce nestles under a row of bulk hoppers dispensing organic cereals. A small shelf of skin care potions hangs next to a little glass-fronted fridge that entices shoppers with juice blends and natural sodas. Customers wonder in and out of the van, maneuvering baskets as though it were any other food store. (more…)