Mornings begin quietly on a small communal farm called OtraCosa in Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Steep mountains delay the sunrise, providing an extra hour of peace before the day begins.
Calls for food sovereignty in Puerto Rico have become more urgent in recent years.
Tara Rodríguez Besosa started the farm OtraCosa to provide for the members of their queer chosen family.Mara Corsino
These environmental factors are further complicated by colonialism and U.S. government policies.
In all, these compounding factors create the perfect storm that has led to an unsustainable food system.
Today, a small team of volunteers and staff at El Depa are working to weather that storm.
The collective house at OtraCosa.Mara Corsino
They distribute heirloom seeds free of charge, loan out farm equipment, share farming skills and hold workshops.
Seed saving and distribution is critical to this vision.
“There is no food sovereignty without seed sovereignty,” says Rodriguez Besosa.
Tara Rodríguez Besosa sits in front of the collective house at OtraCosa. Chef Verónica Quiles Maldonado sits in the background.Mara Corsino
“No project is too small.
“We are not trying to feed a whole island.
We’re trying to support the island to feed itself.”
Chef Verónica Quiles Maldonado relies almost entirely on ingredients grown and foraged on the island. Even the salt used is local—it comes from the Cabo Rojo salt flats in southwest Puerto Rico.
She teaches Food Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill and her forthcoming book explores the foodways of islands around the globe.
Mara Corsino
Jenny Huang
Jenny Huang
Jenny Huang
Jenny Huang
Jenny Huang
