Second Season of Grow North Farm Launches in Mountain View
Grow North Farm is an incubator space for food-based businesses, with more than 28,000 square feet of urban farm space on Mountain View Drive.
Grow North Farm, a partnership between Anchorage Community Land Trust & Catholic Social Services, enters second season
Anchorage Community Land Trust (ACLT) and Catholic Social Services announce the second season of business for Grow North Farm! Opened in 2019, Grow North Farm is an incubator space for food-based businesses, with over 28,000 square feet of urban farm taking root on Mountain View Drive. More than twenty neighborhood farmers are farming on-site, including ten independent businesses, hailing from Burma, Bhutan, Nepal, South Sudan, the Congo, Mexico, and Somalia. The Farm will not be holding events on-site this season, but instead shoppers can stop by the daily farm stand Monday through Friday, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. to purchase fresh-picked produce and cottage goods. This season will also feature online ordering and new lines of Grow North Farm packaged goods to take home.
“Grow North Farm is a place where the talent of our neighborhoods shines brightly, and we at ACLT and CSS are proud to co-create spaces like Grow North Farm with our neighbors. We know everyone needs the opportunity to get ahead for Anchorage to be the best city it can be. That is why we invest in talent that is already in our community and in our neighborhoods. We see Grow North Farm as a way to incubate the next round of amazing businesses and incredible business leaders. Grow North Farm helps to make food-business ownership attainable, and ensures that the next generation of business leaders represents our city. It’s just one example of how together with our neighbors we can create an economically inclusive Anchorage, block by block” said Kirk Rose, CEO of ACLT.
Last season, Grow North Farm farmers generated over $20,000 in sales income for the season, with 100% of the proceeds going directly into farmers pockets. This season will build on that success with new sales channels and new infrastructure to the Farm that will enable increased growth, including access to electricity, cold room storage, and on-site processing. Farmers will continue to hone their agricultural and entrepreneurial skills through training and experience, with opportunity to test their products and scale month-to-month. At the same time, community members can get the freshest produce in the city while supporting up-and-coming talent and locally grown food.