Resettled refugees and immigrants from Africa water and cultivate their own dedicated raised beds at community farm Shamba Ya Amani, Swahili for “farm of peace.” Photo by Hope Yang, Houston Newsroom.
On an overcast Saturday morning, over a dozen women and men worked among beds of collard greens, buttercrunch lettuce and purple larkspur at a 4-acre farm in the Alief area.
They’re at community farm Shamba Ya Amani, which just launched a farm stand on March 28.
Swahili for “farm of peace,” the women-led farm directed by FAM Houston brings together members of the African diaspora and local volunteers to grow fresh produce for body and soul.
The farm stand comes amidst last year’s funding cuts to $1 billion in federal programs helping local farmers sell to food banks and schools.
Due to the cuts, Shamba Ya Amani could no longer sell in bulk to Houston Food Bank and other organizations, Volunteer Coordinator Kelsey Johnson said.
“We had to then pivot to local markets that then took a lot of challenges with transportation and energy and time to go off-site,” Johnson said.
“Now we’re returning to hopefully recenter the farm as a place where we can develop community and sell produce and do it all here: your one-stop shop kind of thing,” Johnson continued.
With the new farm stand, Shamba Ya Amani is growing its impact to the neighboring community, said LaTonya Shaw-Dismuke, community field manager.
“I want people in the community back here in the residential area to know that this is also family, and they can do their grocery shopping here if they want to,” Shaw-Dismuke said.
More than that, Shaw-Dismuke said she hopes people can engage with the farm itself.
“Just the beauty of being here at the farm is an extension of our love to the community,” Shaw-Dismuke said.
In addition to the farm stand, Shamba Ya Amani sells seasonal Shamba Shares, with the next round running from April 14 to June 16.
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