<p>New research on rural New Englanders shows that gardening, hunting, fishing and other HWFP activities are important tools for maintaining food security through extreme events, such as pandemics or climate change events. </p>
<p>University of Vermont and University of Maine researchers found that both food insecurity and home and wild food production (HWFP) – gardening, hunting, fishing, foraging, and having “backyard” poultry or livestock – increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and <strong>those who undertook HWFP activities exhibited improved food security 9-12 months later. </strong></p>
<p>The paper, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-52320-z.pdf">published in <em>Scientific Reports</em></a>, surveyed over 1,000 individuals in rural Vermont and Maine (the two most rural states