Urban Farms can be found across the United States, in every city. These farms are in concrete jungles where fresh produce can be scarce. Having Urban Farms can help a community access healthy nutritious food (Kim et al., 2016). Many of these poorer urban communities can be found in Food Deserts, places where fresh food is not readily available (Jacobson & Silverbush, 2013). This causes families to either spend money on transportation to get to better grocery stores or eat a less nutritional diet.

Allison Hill is one of these unfortunate communities. It’s located in Harrisburg, PA, but remains in a “food desert.” I say this because while they don’t have access to fresh food, their Dollar General has “potential to carry fresh food” because of its freezers, so it’s no longer labeled a food desert (Ryan Johns, personal communication, 2024). This draws government attention away from Allison Hill and their need for fresh food that’s convenient and cheap. Recently, a non-profit program, Wildheart, came in to help this community. In 2022, they opened Hill Farm, an Urban Farm focused on feeding and educating its neighbors (Ryan Johns, personal communication, 2024).

Allison Hill and Hill Farm reminded me of my home in Minneapolis. The community of North Minneapolis, especially the Near North neighborhood, shares lots of characteristics. The bad reputation, diversity, underfunding from the city, and food insecurity are all relative. Another similarity, and reason for the communities’ decline, is they were both redlined in the 1930s (Hardison, 2018; Minnesota Realtors, 2020). This is when banks decide to exclude communities from being able to take out loans for housing, based on race (Ryan Johns, personal communication, 2024). The need for SNAP benefits and other cheap options is obvious in both neighborhoods. In North, 46.9% of residents are on food stamps, in Allison Hill its 36.9% (Statistical Atlas, 2018). Compared to Cumberland County, where 8.9% of the population are on food stamps, these communities are severely underserviced and ignored by the government (Bedi, et al., 2022). Parts of Allison Hill were even used by companies to dump trash (Ryan Johns, personal communication, 2024). Hill Farm is a gateway for the community to have a clean, green space that also provides them food. Hill Farm sells their produce every week at Hamilton Health Center, for slightly less than Giant’s market prices (Ryan Johns, personal communication, 2024).

The part I loved the most about Hill Farm was the education aspect. As an education major, I appreciated the programs the farm had, like bringing in school groups to teach kids in the community about gardening and the potential for a career in it. They are even starting to host an after-school program there next week (Ryan Johns, personal communication, 2024)! I really want to come back as an intern and help on the farm as well as teach in the greenhouses. I feel helping a community that’s like the one I owe so much to, is a great way to give back.

Harrisburg (left), and Minneapolis (right), redlining.

Our class visiting Hill Farm, with Farm Manager Ryan Johns.

References:

Bedi H., Hogan L., Johnson K., Jones M., Kirven C., Mark-Ockerbloom W., McCaa A., O’Bresly L., Salsich N., Uro-De Leon N., Walsh S., Woodward L., & Zook Z. (2022). Cumberland County Food Assessment. Dickinson College, Department of Environmental Studies.

Hardison, L. (2018, August 31). My City Was Gone: How redlining helped segregate, blight Harrisburg. The Burg. https://theburgnews.com/around-the-burg/my-city-was-gone-how-redlining-helped-segregate-blight-harrisburg

Jacobson, K., & Silverbush, L. (2013). A Place at the Table [Documentary]. Magnolia.

Kim B., Palmer A., Santo R. (2016, May). Vacant Lots to Vibrant Plots. Johns Hopkins.

Minnesota Realtors. (2020, October 1). Mapping the Legacy of Racism in Twin Cities Real Estate. https://www.mnrealtor.com/blogs/mnr-news1/2020/10/01/mapping-the-legacy-of-racism-in-twin-cities-real-e

Statistical Atlas. (2018). Food Stamps in Allison Hill, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. https://statisticalatlas.com/neighborhood/Pennsylvania/Harrisburg/Allison-Hill/Food-Stamps

Statistical Atlas. (2018). Food Stamps in Near North, Minneapolis, Minnesota. https://statisticalatlas.com/neighborhood/Minnesota/Minneapolis/Near-North/Food-Stamps