Urban Farming

Detroit's population is rapidly declining, but the answer to revitalizing the city may lie in part in urban farming.

With urban farms sprinkled throughout the island, Cuba is proving to be one of the world's most successful models of how to integrate agriculture into urban areas.

By planting in under-utilized backyards, farmer Trevor Paque has brought small-scale farming to more than 50 homes across San Francisco -- a decentralized farm expected to feed more than 150 families come spring.

Will Allen began Growing Power, an urban farming non-profit, in an ailing Milwaukee neighborhood in 1993. He has since spread the gospel of urban farming throughout the world, and earned a MacArthur Genius grant for his efforts.

Residents of Austin, TX are risking violation of city ordinances forbidding loud animals to raise chickens in their central city neighborhood backyards. It's partly a way to cut out-of-pocket expenses.

Urban farms in Cuba have proven successful at feeding the country and providing hundreds of thousands of jobs.

"Honey from the Hood" is one of the home-grown prodcuts from a Kensington neighborhood garden. To avoid soil contamination from this former industrial site, plants are grown in raised beds or hydroponically.

With growing numbers interested in urban agriculture, American Public Radio's Marketplace interviews one urban farmer in Pasadena, California.

Urban farms are popping up in New York and elsewhere, providing residents with access to fresh, affordable produce.