3/23/2009 6:00:00 AM Wisconsin's extraordinary urban farmer
It's not a bad return - $5 per square foot or about $200,000 per acre.That's the income Will Allen gets from his urban farms in Milwaukee, which serve as a prototype for similar endeavors around the world.
"If you don't organize a community around food, you might as well not bother," said Allen, founder and director of Growing Power, and recipient of a 2008 MacArthur Foundation "genius award" . Allen spoke recently in Madison at an event sponsored by an informal group interested in urban agriculture.
By the creative use of garbage, vacant land and urban residents, Allen has nurtured an organization with 35 staff members and more than 1,000 volunteers that produce $2 million worth of fresh food and related products annually.
"Everyone knows the (conventional) food system is kind of crappy," Allen said. He encouraged Wisconsin, a leader in sustainable agriculture, to "go beyond organic" by tapping multicultural diversity, community cohesiveness and, yes, worms to grow fresh produce.
"Food really engages people," he said, citing the difference between really engaging residents in food production and attempts to organize a community by simply putting up flyers and inviting residents to a meal of "lousy food like hamburgers and hot dogs"
"Start with the kids" by preparing a good meal for them with fresh ingredients, Allen said. He said their parents will show up for the next meal.
Fostering community support for urban agriculture could take years and requires passion, he said. Those who are in it for the money won't last long, nor should supporters rely on government, he said.
Allen said the government could help by "not standing in people's way" by, for example, rescinding restrictive zoning codes and ordinances. Allen said Madison's ordinances allowing backyard chicken production is a mode for other communities.
Allen said "no one should be kicked away from the table" since anyone could prove to be instrumental in a program's success.
Several Milwaukee-area firms now solicit Growing Power's participation since the organization has proven itself to be dependable and is now viewed as a community resource, in part because it attracts thousands of visitors and has led to conferences that generate millions in revenue.
It also works with a commercial purveyor of food for deliveries to several Milwaukee schools.
"We've a long way to go," Allen said, noting that only 1 percent of Milwaukee's food is grown locally. And while nearly every business is interested in going green, most corporations "aren't very creative" and implement policies such as "shredding paper or putting filters on water fountains."
Allen has recently been approached by several large firms interested in Growing Power's Farm-City Market Basket program, serving fresh produce in cafeterias and donating waste. Some have offered sites for urban gardens.
Worms, worms, worms
"Worms are our other employees," essential in producing compost, Allen said. He said worms are potent remediators, able to "crush E. coli in their guts and can even get rid of lead dust." Their gardens use 400,000 pounds of worm castings to produce 150 varieties of greens.
Some of their compost is produced on pallets using a mixture containing 75 percent carbon-25 percent nitrogen, a mix Allen said is consistent with the composition of the waste stream. The preponderance of carbon also helps neutralize odors.
Allen said the biggest challenge is collecting enough waste, a task that required establishing a record for reliability and dependability.
In addition to spent brewers grains, wood chips, and moldy hay and straw from farmers, they also receive 20,000-pound loads of damaged or excess fruits and vegetables from distributors.
When a truck delivers a load, the driver has to know someone will be there to help, even when the wind chill is 40 below zero, Allen said.
Within a few months, the mixture (including cardboard boxes) has been transformed into compost by seven varieties of red worms; compost is then, spread to a depth of two feet on all urban sites, and used in pots -and even over concrete. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is interested in using the method over remediated brownfield sites.
Worms remain in the compost for four months, and are harvested when they crawl through a screen, attracted by new compost. Repeating the procedure removes 80 percent of the worms, quadrupling the number of worms.
Although it was supposedly impossible, Allen raises worms outdoors throughout the winter, maintaining the temperature of compost at about 70 degrees. About 2,000 yards of material are also composted on the group's farm. Growing Point ships worms all over the country.
Allen has also developed a system of aquaponics for lake perch, a cold-water fish, and tilapia.
The constant water temperature means perch grow to market size in a year, instead of three years required in lakes. The 10,000 gallons of heated water for tilapia prevents greenhouses from freezing for about half the cost of a conventional, forced-air heating system. Watercress used to filter the water is sold for $16 per pound.
The fish are "an easy sell," he said.
Several entrepreneurs are now duplicating Allen's system, although he thinks some of their efforts might be premature since they've constructed facilities without having haing been trained in production.
Allen said raising greenhouse plants in tiers is essential for maximizing returns, which can be as high as $30 per square foot for sprouts.
28 types of greens
Greenhouses produce 28 types of greens year-round in four temperature zones, based on the distance from warm compost. Beds are covered when the temperature dips below 25 degrees. To prevent disease, plants are watered in the morning when interior temperatures are at least 50 degrees.
The plants are hit by frost but they recover, Allen said. Customers prefer winter-grown greens in the salad mix, even though their colors aren't as aren't as vivid as those grown during warmer weather.
Growing Point has also developed a continuous flow anaerobic digester that converts food waste into into six products, including acetic acid. Acetic acid can be converted to methane and used for heating.
They raise some livestock - 300 laying hens, turkeys, Muscovy ducks, 150 bee hives and 20 goats, whose milk is used for artisan cheese.
All animals are on a food-waste regime that's "heavy on the green stuff," Allen said.
The larvae of black soldier flies, which somehow arrived from Asia, are now being raised in 55-gallon drums as a protein-rich feed for chickens and fish. (The insect is named for the manner in which newly hatched flies "march" out of breeding areas.)
Gowing Power's outreach efforts span the globe, including Eastern Europe and Africa. Regional partnerships include the construction of hoophouses with Native American tribes and growing soil in New Orleans. It also offers workshops.
Allen said there's a critical shortage of urban farmers. Allen said it has very high expectations of new farmers. One board members offers academic help for kids who couldn't read or write.
The City of Chicago recently contracted with Growing Power to construct a two-acre Art on the Farm in Grant Park, which required 100,000 pounds of compost and 159 different types of plants.
"Obviously, big ag hasn't been able to feed the world. There's more hunger than ever in the world,"Allen said.
Allen is especially encouraged by the increased interest among young people.
And considering the huge interest in urban agriculture and gardening in general, he recommends buying seeds early in case supplies run out.
Allen developed his farming methods in 1995 while helping neighborhood children with a gardening project. He received a B.A. from the University of Miami. After a brief career in professional basketball and a number of years in corporate marketing at Procter and Gamble, he returned to his roots as a farmer.
Information: www.growingpower.org. The Dane County Food Council is sponsoring a trip to Growing Point on March 28 for a contribution of $23 per person. Register by March 20 by contacting bailkey@sbc.global.
