The Los Angeles Food Policy Council’s (LAFPC) Cultivating Farmers program helps urban and peri-urban farmers navigate land access, business development, and long-term viability.
Through workshops, technical assistance, and free one-on-one advising, the program supports growers as they work to build and sustain their operations. For Black Thumb Farm, a nonprofit urban farm in the San Fernando Valley, that support has supported them through a years-long effort to secure long-term access to public land.
Cultivating Farmers launched in 2024 to provide business-focused support to farmers across Los Angeles. Rather than focusing on production practices, the program centers business planning, insurance, grant writing, marketing, and sales strategy.
“The program is all about supporting urban farmers with the business side of running a farm,” Nikhita Jain, Senior Urban Agriculture Program Associate at LAFPC, tells Food Tank. “Outside the work of growing food, starting and operating a farm business has its own learning curve.”
According to Jain, many urban farmers in Los Angeles face barriers that extend well beyond growing food. She says the city lacks some of the support systems available in other cities.”The City of Los Angeles does not have a dedicated person or office focused on urban agriculture,” Jain tells Food Tank.
Without those resources, Jain says many farmers rely on informal agreements with schools, churches, and community organizations to access land. While those arrangements with landowners can create opportunities, they can also leave farmers vulnerable if leadership changes or properties are sold.
“It’s all relationship-based,” Jain explains. “Maybe there’s a city council member who really believes in what the urban farmer is doing. But then if that person changes, that’s where that uncertainty comes in.”
The lack of long-term land security can make it difficult for farmers to plan. Jain says growers may hesitate to invest in infrastructure or soil improvements when they do not know whether they will still have access to the land several years later. Informal arrangements can also make it harder to access certain grants and federal programs that require documentation of land tenure.
Black Thumb Farm has experienced many of those challenges firsthand.
Founded by Alexys Romo and Analisa Joh, the nonprofit urban farm centers BIPOC youth and communities through land-based programming, culturally sustaining food production, and environmental education. The organization operates programs that introduce young people to farming, workforce development, food sovereignty, and stewardship of the natural world.
Black Thumb Farm has spent roughly five years working to secure access to a 2.3-acre publicly owned parcel in the northeastern San Fernando Valley.
“There is no formal or institutionalized process,” Jain tells Food Tank. “They just started calling the city and trying to figure out who to talk to. Eventually they got a call back.”
Throughout that effort, Black Thumb Farm has worked with partners including the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust while navigating multiple layers of local government. Jain says the experience illustrates both the persistence required of urban farmers and the need for stronger institutional support.
Helping farmers navigate those challenges is a central part of Cultivating Farmers’ mission. In addition to workshops, the program offers individualized advising sessions with Jain where growers can receive support tailored to their specific goals and obstacles.
Jain believes additional public investment and dedicated support structures could help more urban farmers establish long-term roots. But she also points to organizations like Black Thumb Farm as evidence of what is possible when growers receive the support they need.
For communities across Los Angeles, the benefits extend beyond food production. Farms can create green space, provide educational opportunities, and strengthen community connections. Through Cultivating Farmers, LAFPC is working to ensure that the people building those spaces have the tools and resources to succeed.
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Photo courtesy of Black Thumb Farm
