Farming In The Inner City Without Acres Of Dirt

Bowen Harvest Farm's Entrepreneurship Instructor Joe Jones shows the students how to prepare salads. PHOTO COURTESY OF TASSI COMMUNICATIONS
Bowen Harvest Farm's Entrepreneurship Instructor Joe Jones shows the students how to prepare salads. PHOTO COURTESY OF TASSI COMMUNICATIONS

Farming In The Inner City Without Acres Of Dirt

Since October of 2023, Joe Jones has served as the Senior Director of Entrepreneurship at By The Hand Club For Kids, overseeing the entrepreneurship programming for Bowen Harvest, Chicago’s only youth-led hydroponic container fam, located on the city’s south side is entirely student run and operated.

The Altgeld Gardens community on the city’s south side is now home to a farm without acres of dirt.  The growing of produce takes place inside a 500-square-foot hydroponic container, (a transformed shipping container).  The work being performed by the students inside of the hydroponic container is changing the look of traditional farming.

At the Altgeld-Murray farm, students grow nutrient dense produce such as lettuce, kale and collard greens are grown. The site alone is capable of producing more than four acres of produce annually and more than a ton of fresh food yearly.

Bowen Harvest is an initiative of By The Hand Club For Kids. A Christ centered after school program situated in Chicago’s more underserved communities.  The program facilitators have a strong commitment to developing students’ business skills while giving back to the community, said Joe. 

Jones credits the success of the program to their funding sponsors and specifically, its name sake sponsors the ‘Bowen’ family in honor of Gil’s and Marlene’s lifelong mission to support service, youth programing and education.

Jones added that Bowen Harvest teaches students entrepreneurship skills and many of the tolls needed to run a successful business.  But it also teaches them how to use those skills to support their community.

According to a press release, the students are assigned shifts and are given hands-one experience in STEM 9Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).  They are learning and earning a stipend at the same time.


Vernelle Daniel, a student participant in the program, said that he became involved with the program through an introduction to Jones while attending a Bible Study session at the ‘By the Hands Club for Kids’.   Vernelle said, “he was reluctant to get involved in the farming program at first because he viewed it as a lot of work.  Things changed for him once he got involved and took a sponsored trip to learn more about farming.   Upon his return he started to have more fun working and learning with peers and co-workers”.

The organization has 20 students on their roster and 8 of them oversee the farming production at the Altgeld-Murray site.  Under the leadership of Jones, his team of entrepreneurs are reshaping the food desert landscape in communities of color on the south sides of the city. All produce grown by the students is distributed free of charge to residents and nonprofits in their community.


Now in its third year, the program is supported by Kenilworth Union Church as well as “Freight to Plate,’ experts in hydroponic farming. In addition to giving produce away, the young farmers now provide freshly packaged ready-to-serve salad kits. The packaged salad kits contain a leafy produce coupled with ingredients like carrots, broccoli, onions and mushrooms.


According to the USDA, we should consume three or more servings of vegetables and fruits in our daily diets to promote healthier lifestyles.  Our daily meal consumptions not only consist of fruits and vegetables like those provided by Bowen Harvest. It is also necessary to include, poultry, beans, nuts, grains and other nutrients for our diets, especially for the older population.   Consumers can visit the U.S. Department of Agriculture/U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website to learn more.

The student farmers at Bowen Harvest site earn wages from $15 to $18 per hour.  Student participants are gaining much more than a paycheck through the programs.  The STEM academics are present throughout the entire learning process.  Their skills in the container farm, including, lighting , watering, temperature control, and harvesting—all a part of a day’s work on the farm.

In 2011, the food desert epidemic across the city heightened, leaving residents living in low-income communities without accessibility to grocery stores and food marts.   Although residents were able to purchase staple items in their communities like milk and bread from local gas stations, fresh produce was not readily available.

In 2013, under former mayor Emanuel, a data report was released by the city that showed efforts being put forth to combat the food deserts dilemma.  However, to date many of the communities across the city are still struggling.

Therefore, the answering of the clarion call by the students at Bowen Harvest certainly moves the needle for those residents surrounding their farms.  More governmental resources are needed in many city’s around the world.  With more support from the community, programs like Bowen Harvest will help improve access to healthier food choices, supporting an area of need for low-income residents in communities of color.

The majority of Bowen Harvest’s distribution is done through local food pantries.  The partner pantries are located at: CYC, Free Indeed and Shelton Heights. 

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