City Girl Farming is all about 'Reconnecting Food and People', which serves as the business' mission statement. I started my business in opposition to our current food systems after discovering the seemingly countless negative effects caused by its design. I am an immigrant from Poland and grew up in a county that was isolated during a communist regime. Many things were unavailable, and food was one of them. I learned at a very young age that food was sacred, and it was to be greatly valued. Despite living in the city, my grandmother cultivated an extensive garden with hoop houses and a chicken coup. We cooked our meals every day from scratch, shopped at the farmers market twice a week, sought out meat from the local butcher, and acquired freshly baked bread from a bakery around the corner.

 

When I moved to America at the age of 19, I was exposed to an unknown lifestyle around food that changed my understanding of what was considered food and where it came from. At first it was very exciting, new, and extremely abundant. Or so it seemed. However, trying all the new things came at a cost to my health and well-being that I did not immediately understand. The connection between food and wellness wouldn’t come to me until much later, while pursuing a career in the hospitality industry and doing my own research.

 

Ultimately, the more I learned about our food systems and its implications, the more powerless, hopeless, and angry I grew. I found my way out of that realm through farming as a way to reconnect to the very core values I grew up with and by doing what I know how to do best. City Girl Farming was born out of the desire to create a new way to connect people to their food in a healthy, sustainable way.

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-- Justyna, Founder