Greenies Urban Farm

2022 NACo Achievement Award Winner

Bexar County, Texas, TX

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About the Program

Category: Human Services (Best in Category)

Year: 2022

Bexar County and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service have traditionally strived to help Texans better their lives; more specifically Texas’ families through the application of evidence-based knowledge. In 2019, Bexar County developed the Greenies Urban Farm project, 10-acres of undeveloped land in San Antonio’s inner city known as the Eastside and part of the Eastside Promise Zone. In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a need that rose to the top of everyone’s priority list was food insecurity. Food distribution centers were pushed to the brink with high demand for food and low food donation and supply shortages. Bexar County sprang into action to utilize 1-acre of land dedicated for the future 10-acre Greenies Urban Farm for high density vegetable production to feed its most vulnerable families. As a result of our work this 1-acre will continue to be dedicated for fruit and vegetable production to serve communities in need and indirectly impact the obesity and food insecurity challenges that impact the health and well-being of Bexar County families by shaping their attitudes toward urban agriculture, food, and health. To date, 26,304 pounds of fresh food and 21,395 meals have been donated to those most in need.

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