Building a Resilient City with a Network of Community Food Hubs

Photography by Gabor Sass

By Gabor Sass, Sustainability Activator, Small Steps Studio

What if one day you stepped into your grocery store and found the shelves empty? Could it happen here in London?

Besides shocking our society economically, emotionally and physically, the COVID crisis initially wobbled food supply chains leading to some empty shelves of flour, yeast and of course toilet paper. While the globalized food system rebounded quickly and is currently reaping record profit, it has initiated discussions the world over, including here in London, on how to increase the resilience of our local food system to future shocks that could be set off by anything from pandemics to extreme climate change events.

While the question on how we make our local food system more resilient has many answers, I would like to focus on just one: urban agriculture. Many people in Canadian cities agree with me, as they have invested heavily with money and time during the past year to grow more of their own food for a more secure local supply of food.

But how do we scale up urban agriculture here in London? I believe we can do this by establishing a network of community food hubs across the city that can act as sites of production, education and celebration in urban agriculture.

Community food hubs can grow a lot of food within our urban neighbourhoods on either public or private lands (think urban parks, old derelict industrial buildings, or existing urban farmland). Using a diversity of growing techniques ranging from raised bed gardens to heated greenhouses, they can grow and sell not only produce but seeds and seedlings. The produce can find its way to people in need or those eating at high-end restaurants. The model of thirds used by Urban Roots London is a great way to distribute food grown within city limits.

Community food hubs can also fill the vital role of educating Londoners in urban agriculture. Training programs can reskill people of all abilities to grow, process and cook freshly grown, organic foods. The trainees will fan out across the city bringing home urban agricultural expertise to our gardens and to our local food businesses. Take note: community food hubs will create hundreds of jobs!

Finally, since community food hubs are embedded in our urban neighbourhoods, they are natural places where the community can meet and celebrate with fresh food. Food brings people together. Period.

Is this a pie in the sky idea? In fact, the network of community food hubs is already in its infancy. The Grove at Western Fair District is already acting as a hub of innovation for the local food system, Urban Roots London has been growing thousands of pounds of food since 2017 and the London Food Bank is investing heavily into growing food in greenhouses. Other similar projects are waiting for funders, municipal green lights and innovative ideas of Londoners to turn dream into reality.

London, let’s shock the post-COVID world by building resilience into our local food system through establishing a network of community food hubs where innovation in urban agriculture will be developed and then spread to every nook and cranny of this great city! Our food cupboards will never have to go empty.