Winnipeg entrepreneur brings farms into the city

WINNIPEG — A local entrepreneur is bringing farms into the city and calling it a ‘hyper local’ way to get your food.

“I realized that our food is travelling way too far to get to us,” David Gingera, owner of CitiGrow said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I realized that our food is travelling way too far to get to us," David Gingera, owner of CitiGrow said.

CitiGrow is a network of 22 micro-farms in and around Winnipeg. The farms produce chemical free. Gingera said it’s through companies like his that people learn just how much food we can grow here at home.

“Manitoba is a great place for agriculture. The cool thing about it is that through CitiGrow and through other local growers, people can learn what Manitoba has to offer,” Gingera said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Manitoba is a great place for agriculture. The cool thing about it is that through CitiGrow and through other local growers, people can learn what Manitoba has to offer," Gingera said.

CitiGrow started supplying fresh produce to restaurants, but as the demand for local food grows, they are expanding to provide people who live in urban areas with the option of a produce subscription box. The box is delivered weekly and full of food grown in the province.

“Everything from culinary herbs, to tomatoes, to zucchini, squash, peppers, you name it it’ll be there,” Gingera said. Their produce doesn’t travel very far either, all of the restaurants they supply are within 25 kilometers.

The goal is to show people that you can grow produce in very urban environments.

Ami Bakerman is the of the micro-farmers and is growing his food at The Forks. He said that knowing where his food comes from has always been important to him and his family.

“I grow vegetables year round in my basement but definitely in the summer in my backyard I have a nice plot of vegetables that grows like crazy,” Bakerman said.

The former chef hopes the urban fresh food movement continues to pick up momentum in Winnipeg as companies like CitiGrow expand.

“It’s local produce but also a local business owner so it’s perfect,” Bakerman said.

The produce subscription boxes will be available in June.