Connecting the Next Generation of Farmers to the Land

Using a “buy-support-protect-sell” model, we offer a viable, sustainable alternative to a food future dominated by a handful of large industrial farming operations. Time and again in recent years, we’ve seen how vulnerable industrial-scale supply chains can be. In a country where one in eight residents will experience food insecurity this year, a food system supported by reliable local suppliers is more important than ever.

Building those strong local food systems means being able to act quickly to deploy resources and expertise to acquire and protect farmland at risk of development. It means connecting the next generation of diverse farmers with the land so their ideas and excitement can bloom along with their produce. And it means making sure those farmers have the resources they need to connect with their communities and make a real difference by supplying fresh, nutritious food.

Our Working Farms initiative brings all those elements together.

In only a few years, we have been able to connect farmers with threatened farmland in the Atlanta, Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina metro areas — strengthening local food systems, generating economic activity and supporting a healthy, resilient environment by keeping farmland farming instead of being paved over for strip malls or housing developments.

Farmers like Rahul Anand, whose growing Snapfinger Farm is bringing young people into farming and helping meet the high demand for fresh local food in the Atlanta area through sustainable farm growth. And Deshawn Willingham, who leads a team of diverse growers at Chicago Urban Farm Solutions to produce high-quality vegetables and businesses centered on community, health and accessibility.

Thanks to our supporters and especially our farmers, we’ve been able to accomplish a lot in a very short time. And we have ambitious plans for the years ahead – tapping into America’s small-farming heritage to reimagine our farming future.