Growing our own food

Growing Communities provides trading outlets for local farmers,  but we also grow some of our own food.

Urban market gardens

We grow organic vegetables on our three small Soil Association organic certified growing sites as part of our aim of increasing the amount of organic produce grown right here in Hackney.

Two urban apprentices and a team of volunteer workers help us with this task and the food grown is sold through the Box Scheme. We specialise in mixed salad bags and are aiming to supply all the salad needs of the Box Scheme from our own sites. The market gardens will generate laround £10,000 this year, but are not yet covering their direct costs. We continue to work on increasing productivity and yields.

Patchwork Farm

Our Patchwork Farm will be made up of urban micro-sites based in back gardens, on church land and on estates.  Qualified urban apprentices are offered a micro-site when they successfully complete their apprenticeship and are provided with the opportunity to sell any produce they grow through the box scheme.  Currently, we have 2 micro-sites up and running and another 2 in development.

Community orchards

We have helped to plant and continue to support two urban orchards here in Hackney.

>> Find out more about our approach to urban food growing