Community backs new City Farm in the heart of Sydney

 

The City of Sydney’s plans to develop a working farm in the heart of the city have been backed by gardening and agricultural experts and community groups.

The City Farm, located in Sydney Park, will provide farmers’ markets with fresh, locally-produced food, feature an urban fruit-filled orchard, and run a program of sustainable workshops.

Television gardening expert Costa Georgiadis congratulated the City on a fantastic initiative that will transform peoples’ understanding of local food production.

“This is one of the best developments to happen in Sydney in decades – every city should have a City Farm,” Costa said.

“This farm will be a legacy that will help reconnect people with local and seasonal food. It will become a well-loved place to understand how to grow food, cook it, preserve it and then share it in the heart of a thriving community. I’m on board this tractor for the long haul.”

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the inner city farm would allow city residents the chance to learn about country life and would cater for dozens of educational, community and cultural activities.

“Sydney is one of the few Australian cities without a city farm, yet there’s a staggering amount of community support for one – 95 per cent of people who made submissions during our feasibility study said they wanted a city farm,” the Lord Mayor said.

“We’ve worked closely with the community to develop a place that offers inner-city residents a taste of life on a farm, a place to forge new friendships and the opportunity to learn more about how food is produced.

“With more people than ever living in the city and choosing to raise families here, the City Farm will be an important place for people to see where their food comes from – as well as the chance to grow their own.

“The site is located in a small area of Sydney Park, and won’t affect the areas people use for jogging, picnics, riding bikes and walking dogs.”

Local landscape architect and inner west community gardener, Belinda Dods, said the City Farm would open up opportunities for residents of all ages.

“The City’s community gardens already do a fantastic job of bringing the community together, and the City Farm is a great way to build on this really strong community framework,” Ms Dods said.

“It’s important for people to learn about the seasonality of food, so this is a really great chance for hands-on learning in the heart of the city.”

The president of the Sydney City Farm Community Group, Katy Svalbe, said there were more than 1,500 supporters for the City Farm on their mailing list, and around 2,000 more on social media.

“The Sydney Farm Community promotes the establishment of city farms for a green and sustainable future in urban Sydney,” she said.

“We support the establishment of a City Farm in Sydney Park and congratulate City of Sydney on the steps taken so far towards achieving this goal.”

Georgie Pollard, the owner of local café Concrete Coffee, said the City Farm would be a fantastic source of fresh, seasonal organic produce for businesses in the area.

“We buy local for several reasons – local producers are people you can get to know, and out of that relationship you get an understanding of the care that they put into their product,” Ms Pollard said.

“A City Farm will play a vital role in educating the community about the importance of locally grown food as well as supplying fresh fruit and vegies for local café owners like us.”

Brian Jones from the University of Sydney’s faculty of agriculture and environment said a community-oriented City Farm would be a real asset for Sydney Park and a valuable educational resource.

“The primary objective of the City Farm is to teach children and other residents about the challenges, realities and opportunities of food production,” he said.

“The City Farm will be a valuable educational resource to build community appreciation and understanding of the importance of agriculture. We look forward to working with the City Farm in the future.”

Murray Wilton from the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW said they fully support the City Farm which will play a vital role in agricultural education.

“Once children are engaged and focused on agriculture, they’re encouraged to investigate and become more aware of the industry.” Mr Wilton said.

“The Royal Agricultural Society of NSW aligns ourselves with selected organisations that will benefit agricultural education, and we believe the City Farm will do that.”

Based at Sydney Park in St Peters, the City Farm will include:

  • Gardens and an orchard producing fresh fruit and vegetables annually;
  • A weekly organic farmers’ market;
  • Composting and waste management programs;
  • Regular sustainable lifestyle training and educational classes, and;
  • Community volunteering opportunities.

The farm is expected to open late next year and will initially be managed by the City of Sydney before becoming a not-for-profit community enterprise in the medium term.

For more information visit City of Sydney