Tiffany Haddish is working to raise $25 million and recruit products from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color for her new BIPOC-focused grocery store Diaspora Groceries.
The “Girls Trip” star announced plans for her Crenshaw-based grocery store as part of her mission to combat food insecurity. Haddish’s store will provide sustainable food from quality local vendors as well as offer cooking and financial management lessons to customers.
“There will be specialty things and a normal market and a nonprofit-like educational component, where people can take cooking classes and a financial literacy class,” Haddish told The Washington Post.
“I’m a firm believer that once you understand how money works, once you understand how food works, you become a healthier, happier human being. And when you’re healthier and happier, the family’s healthier and happier, and the community’s healthier and happier.”
According to its website, Diaspora Groceries is looking to “build authentic and lasting partnerships among companies owned by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color,” and is accepting applications to stock its shelves. There’s also a community survey looking for suggestions from locals on who they want to see represented in the store.
In 2021, Haddish opened up about her experience with food insecurity and how her relationship with food changed as she went from surviving homelessness to becoming a Hollywood star.
“Food insecurity is a real thing for me,” she told Essence. “Something I’ve experienced the majority of my existence.”
The “Haunted Mansion” star was working with the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation at the time and shared why the initiative was so important to her.
“When I was homeless, I used to eat off of people’s pomegranate, passion fruit and orange trees,” she said.
“I’ve noticed within the last 15 years, at least in my hood anyways, all of these fruit trees have disappeared. They cut them all down. There used to be fruit trees all up and down the street. There’s no access. It’s like where’s the fruit? Where is the free food?”
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