Aug 3, 2021
Editor’s Note: The following list details some of the socially-impactful urban farms in the US employing Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) to better support their communities. There are numerous farms around the world that address socio-economic challenges in their local communities. This list is not exhaustive but rather meant to illustrate the variety of ways that urban farms are creating positive local outcomes.
Food insecurity is a global concern.
However, some communities experience food insecurity vastly differently than others.
In 2015, 87.3% of U.S. households were food secure. This means that they had “access, at all times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members.” While this seems like a healthy majority, the reality is that 12.7% of US households — 48 million people — experienced some level of food insecurity, and 7.7% were severely impacted by “low food security”.
There’s no doubt that we need to better support these communities with access to fresh, nutritious food and at the same time, help farmers enter the agricultural industry and succeed in it.
But, how can urban farms support food-insecure households and/or underserved communities while at the same time maintaining a financially sustainable business?
Here are 8 businesses doing precisely that:
#1: Vertical Harvest Farms
Image sourced from Vertical Harvest
Located out of Jackson, Wyoming, this vertical hydroponic greenhouse located in a 3-story building provides inclusive employment for underserved populations.
The team defines “underserved populations” as those individuals who struggle to find meaningful work and upwardly mobile career opportunities. The flagship farm in Jackson comprises community members with developmental disabilities (such as Autism and Down Syndrome).
As a result, Vertical Harvest is not only growing fresh petite greens, lettuces, microgreens, tomatoes, and edible flowers to better serve their local market, they’re also creating real career development opportunities for a population that is too often overlooked.
#2: Cape Abilities Farm
Image sourced from the Cape Abilities Farm
Similarly to Vertical Harvest, the Cape Abilities Farm has been providing individuals with disabilities with training, employment, and opportunities to interact with the local community since 2006.
As one of three social enterprises established by Cape Abilities — a nonprofit providing jobs, homes, transportation, social and therapeutic services for people with disabilities - this farm not only introduces hydroponic greenhouse farms and hoop houses to the community of Cape Cod, they’re also able to cultivate a more diverse and inclusive community.
#3: PHILLIPS Growing Futures Program
Former Agritecture client the PHILLIPS School - Laurel is a school that caters to students with emotional and behavioral health needs. Their specialized education program offers highly individualized learning environments, social skills training, and integrated services for those with special needs to be able to find authentic job opportunities in their community.
By incorporating an indoor farm on the premises, they’re now also able to expose students to the different forms of hydroponic growing and expand their skill sets by training them on how to grow crops and manage an indoor farm, coupling this with the culinary arts.
#4: Harlem Grown
In responding to the food insecurity challenges of many Harlem residents in New York City, the non-profit Harlem Grown converts abandoned land into community gardens, with the intention of providing free food to the community, while educating young minds on nutrition and health.
With a mix of soil-based farms, hydroponic greenhouses, and school gardens, this organization has been supporting Harlem’s residents with access to healthy food for over a decade. The team runs immersive, hands-on farm tours for the youth to learn about hydroponics, soil-based farming, and composting.
#5: Teens For Food Justice
Arising from a program engaging teens in meaningful community service programs that benefit marginalized populations, Teens For Food Justice (TFFJ) has been working since 2009 to feed communities and ensure a food-secure future for all.
This non-profit organization’s mission is “to end food security in a generation, by galvanizing a youth led movement to bring good quality, affordable, fresh, healthy food access to the communities across New York.” Through TFFJ’s programs, teens are empowered to build and manage high capacity vertical hydroponic farms within their schools. These farms can grow thousands of pounds of fresh produce annually, which are then served directly in their cafeterias daily.
#6: Universe City Farm
This urban aquaponic farm is run by a team of agriculturists, farmers, artists, activists, entrepreneurs, and techies looking to “build a food sovereign city.” The Universe City Farm “holds the promise of creating a decentralized food port model that will lead the way for localized economies and create the smallest environmental impact within our cities.”
Since March 2020, this former Agritecture client has been working with several community organizations to receive and distribute free healthy fruits, vegetables, and prepared meals to the East Brooklyn Community. So far, they’ve distributed over 2,500,000 pounds of fresh free food.
#7: Truly Living Well
Based out of Atlanta, the Truly Living Well Center for Natural Urban Agriculture has used its expertise to demonstrate how food can bridge diverse cultures, backgrounds, and experiences. Through a mix of greenhouse and soil-based food production, TLW provides their community “with a dependable, consistent source of fresh produce, much of which can be earmarked specifically for those who cannot afford to purchase it otherwise.”
According to the organization, they grow stronger communities by “connecting people with the land through education, training, and demonstration of economic success in natural urban agriculture.”
Agritecture observed Truly Living Well’s deep roots in the Atlanta community during the AgLanta Conference, the Southeast’s largest urban agriculture conference, which ran each year from 2017-2019. That first year, conference partners cut a $27,000 check to the nonprofit in recognition of their decade-long impact.
#8: NY Sun Works Farm
Alongside building state-of-the-art science labs, NY Sun Work’s Greenhouse Project is dedicated to improving K-12 Environmental Science Education in urban schools through integrated facilities, hands-on curriculum, and professional development.
Their greenhouse classroom labs operate as an integrated part of the school’s curriculum, offering students the opportunity to grow food, while learning hands-on about nutrition, water resource management, efficient land use, climate change, biodiversity, conservation, contamination, pollution, waste management, and sustainable development.