Our Impact
2022 Impacts
REPARATIONS
This year, Sprout began distributing $500,000 in reparations to Black and Indigenous-led land projects throughout Louisiana. Growers are using these funds to make purchases they most need, like land, farm equipment, and higher education. Reparations work represents an important first step to restoring justice, and we are ready to grow our Land & Equity programming in the direction decided by Black and Indigenous farmers.
TRUCK FARM TABLE
Sprout’s Truck Farm Table at the Crescent City Farmers Market continues to put money in the pockets of urban growers, and connects them with resources that can help them scale up. In 2022, the Truck Farm Table earned $35,000 for small urban growers.
Policy Work
We premiered our most recent city-wide policy platform “A Greener New Orleans” with The Greater New Orleans Grower’s Alliance and New Orleans Food Policy Action Committee (FPAC). This platform will protect the food sovereignty of the City of New Orleans by making policy changes to allow more residents to excel at urban gardening and farming. Learn more about the platform here.
SPROUT’s policy and research team is working to bring Gulf South farmers to the table for the 2023 Farm Bill. Working together with Gulf South for a Green New Deal, FPAC, and the Mississippi River Network, our Farm Bill work makes sure that the grass roots have a say in national policy and programs for farming, hunger and nutrition, fisheries, and climate for the next five years.
Climate organizing
This year, Sprout convened farmers and residents to put together a proposal for Louisiana’s Governors Climate Initiative Task Force, resulting in sustainable agriculture being named as a viable way for Louisiana to address the climate crisis.
In June, Sprout participated in the Gulf Gathering for Climate Justice and Joy in Baton Rouge. Through raucous celebration of what we love about our homeplace, we fought alongside other organizations for a hopeful future for the Gulf South. Sprout strengthened relationships with leaders and activists across the region - from Texas to Puerto Rico.
Farmer Technical Assistance
With office hours each week, cover crop field days, and a demonstration pollinator tract in the Lafitte Greenway, SPROUT has provided 160 hours of hands-on training and technical advice to 25 growers in the state this year as part of our Producers & Sustainability programming.
community gardens
The jubilant and tight-knit community of over 30 growers continues to thrive in their space at the ReFresh Garden. Susan Clay, a garden member for seven years, reflects:
“Thinking about what the garden means to me… it’s about community. It’s about family. In these past couple of years, with all of these things that we’ve been going through, I was shut in. I couldn’t go out. I had people from the garden every week, every couple of days, coming to drop off vegetables to me, to drop off bouquets to me at my doorstep. I’m telling you, the garden is a lifeline to me.”
Susan Clay, Community Garden Member
Read more about our Community Food programming.
Fundraising for local growers
In collaboration with MAKE-UP: Improv & Drag, Sprout hosted two Veggie Bingo nights, which raised $600 for New Orleans neighborhood gardens, including Faubourg St. John Community Garden and Jeanette Bell’s Gardens on Mars.
In the wake of hurricane Ida we raised over $6,000 for local food purchasing from impacted farmers to make sure they had stable markets and Louisiana’s residents had the freshest and healthiest food as they re-stocked their fridges.