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As this is being written, the 14 acre South Central Farm on 41st street and Alameda is being bulldozed, the fences that separated the magnificent plots torn down, and an urban landscape that was in many ways truly magical will no longer be present at that site.
Through CFJ's Farm to School work in Riverside County over the past 2 years we have been supporting small family farmers whose land is being continually threatened by development. Riverside County is one of the fastest growing counties in the country and has also historically been one of the leading agricultural counties in California. Unfortunately as the demand for affordable housing rises and the population increases, agricultural lands are being swallowed up by suburbs. Desert communities in Riverside County expect enormous population growth of 50% or more in just 5 years, and will add tens of thousands of new homes each year to meet housing needs. Faced with these grim statistics, it is hard to see a future for farm to school in a rapidly growing and agriculture-stifling county such as Riverside.
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