Crystal Díaz - Cofounder, PRoduce

For leading Puerto Rico's fight to achieve food sovereignty

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CRYSTAL DÍAZ'S GROCERY-delivery app PRoduce is reviving Puerto Rico's agricultural sector and reclaiming its foodways. Although the island has a tropical climate where crops can grow year-round, natural disasters and economic crises have all taken their toll, and now Puerto Rico imports 85% of its food. (Plus, a 1920 law requiring all imports to come via American-owned and -crewed vessels contributes to higher prices.) Díaz cofounded PRoduce in 2018 to give consumers and chefs access to thousands of locally sourced vegetables, fruits, meats, and other goods typically not sold in grocery stores on the island, which in 2014 boasted the most Walmart-owned superstores per square mile in the world. The app now has nearly 70,000 users, and even delivers.