Planting Seeds for Change

words and photos by Lisa Thibodeau

Drive just minutes past light rail tracks, fast food restaurants and discount grocery outlets in Rancho Cordova, and you can find yourself in a huge patch of farmland, complete with rows of welcoming sunflowers, clucking chickens, grazing sheep and even a pig named Whiskey. Step out of your car, and your shoes sink into rich, dark soil. Stroll inside the farm’s produce stand, and you are greeted by a dazzling array of organic produce. Purple eggplant, bunches of carrots, tomatoes still warm from the sun and watermelons the size of basketballs provide a feast for the eyes. This oasis of very fertile earth, still located firmly inside of gritty city life, is Soil Born Farms’ American River Ranch, a place where local urbanites can reconnect with the land and a healthier way of life.

Where Food Comes From 
A generation of kids is growing up thinking that food comes from grocery store shelves and that salad comes in plastic bags. Shawn Harrison, Soil Born’s Executive Director and Founder, hopes he can change that by teaching kids what really happens “from seed to table,” so that they might understand how to take better care of the environment and their own bodies.

Soil Born Farms strives to grow a diverse selection of produce which they sell to farmers markets, local restaurants and through their Community Supported Agricultural project’s home delivery boxes. They also offer educational programs, including work experience and field trips that introduce local kids to farming. Harrison notes that besides simply offering kids “a safe place…to be outside in the fresh air,” the farm aims to teach kids about sustainable farming methods and how to cook and enjoy healthy foods.

Most of these kids have never witnessed anything planted in the ground, have never pulled a potato or carrot from the earth. “It’s an eye-opening experience for these kids; they begin to understand where food comes from,” Harrison observes. They also learn about the cycle of the seasons and how everything in nature works in harmony. A father himself, Harrison loves to see his own daughters, ages 3 and 5, out in the farm. “They love it,” he says.

Harrison hopes that the kids who visit the farms from nearby schools will leave with a better understanding of what it actually takes to get dinner on the table, and that these kids will become motivated to work to protect the environment; at the same time, he hopes they learn to respect their bodies and what they put in them.

An Organic Evolution
Harrison and his partner, Marco Franciosa, Soil Born’s Farms Director, didn’t set out to be organic farmers. Both majored in History in college, but discovered they wanted to work for social change. After college, both went on to study organic farming methods, Harrison learning about indigenous agriculture in the Latino community while Franciosa travelled and apprenticed on organic farms.

The two shared a dream of connecting urbanites with local, organic foods while addressing the problem of food insecurity in our communities. (People who are “food insecure” must cut their food intake in tough times and don’t always know when or how they will eat next.) The pair began farming on a small patch of land they didn’t even own, then acquired their 1.5 acre parcel on Hurley Way in Sacramento; they have now expanded to the vibrant 25 acre ranch on the American River Parkway in Rancho Cordova.

They have put what they learned into practice at Soil Born Farms, with natural pest control techniques like crop-rotating, which disrupts disease and keeps the soil healthy. Sean Hagan, Farm Manager, says they also “plant perennials that attract beneficial insects – pollinators and predators of some of the harmful insects.”

In 2003 Janet Zeller joined their team, as Communications Director, and in 2004 they converted to a not-for-profit status. As they expand, the group is particularly excited about their new apprenticeship program. Apprentices live and work on the land while they learn every angle of urban farming, from pulling weeds to marketing. It is hard work, and Harrison is amazed by the caliber of applicants. “They have attended the best schools around the country,” he says. This seems to be a reflection of the changing face of farmers today. According to Harrison, “They are a very educated group of folks, young, and interested in the environment and social change.”

This year Soil Born Farms hosts their 6th Annual Autumn Equinox Feast on September 20th at their Hurley Farm. The harvest celebration boasts gourmet food, wine, music and a silent auction. Soil Born Farms also hosts a volunteer night once a month at either farm where you can get your hands dirty digging in the earth, help with farm duties, then relax with a potluck dinner.

Lisa M. Thibodeau is a local mother of two and a freelance writer. Check out her Sacramento Parent blog!