Resident urges backyard and community gardening to ease rising food costs

Amanda Bertrand of The Villages spoke during public input at the July 28 Lake County School Board meeting and urged residents to consider backyard and container gardening to help offset rising grocery prices.

Bertrand said immature luffa fruit can be cooked and eaten like cucumber or squash and noted luffa has two growing seasons locally. She described luffa uses ranging from Asian cooking varieties to dried ball luffa used as shower sponges and suggested luffa’s biodegradable properties could make it an eco‑friendly material for packaging and water absorption.

Bertrand framed her comments as addressing food affordability. She said grocery prices have climbed over the past five years, putting pressure on Floridians on fixed incomes, and suggested that community gardens and home raised beds — similar in spirit to World War I and World War II "victory gardens" — could help residents grow produce and supplement household food supplies.

Bertrand spoke on behalf of "Farmer Banks Helfrich," a resident she identified as living in the Clay Road District of South Lake County. The transcript records no board response or follow-up action tied to the public comment during the meeting.