Annual Report: A look back at our growth in 2024
“We believe that turning vacant lots into productive, nourishing farmland can create something from nothing – an amenity from an eyesore.”
— Raleigh City Farm Founders
2024 was an exciting year of growth and change for Raleigh City Farm. Guided by our strategic plan, we formed a Future Farms planning committee and began exploring and vetting partnerships to address expansion, including a second site. Phase One was completed in May with the addition of the Blount and Delway parcels added to our lease, increasing our footprint by 20% to 1.2 acres! Within three months, we transformed the site with over two dozen work groups. To ensure sustainable financial capacity for this plan, we launched a Future Farms Fund and are over halfway to our ambitious fundraising goal of $200,000 with board giving leading the way.
We doubled down on regenerative and climate resilient practices to ensure healthier soil and plants. These included thoughtful crop rotation and interplanting, increased use of cover crops and improved Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques. This resulted in a harvest of ~13,000 lbs in spite of challenges from severe weather conditions and pest pressure caused by animals, insects and disease. Over 50% of our yield was shared with our nonprofit partners through our Farmshare program, the rest was sold at our seasonal Pay-What-You Can Farmstand.
We also expanded our education and engagement activities by hosting 141 workdays, tours, workshops, events and outreach programs to deepen participants’ knowledge of regenerative agriculture. This growth was possible due to expanded team capacity including our outstanding Farm Managers, Maria Williford and Colleen Yeager, Program Coordinator Talyr Johnson and nine talented interns who gained invaluable skills and experience. Behind the scenes, our dedicated board and advisory council guided our work with their time, talents and treasure. Generous support from partners and funders was critical to fertilizing our growth and success.
We’re excited to cultivate the seeds of opportunity we planted in the year ahead and report back on our progress. The relevance of our mission to “connect and nourish our community through regenerative agriculture” inspires us to dream bigger, dig deeper and move closer to our vision of a healthy community supporting the next generation of farmers.
With deep appreciation,
Lisa Grele Barrie
Executive Director
2024 By the Numbers
2024 By the Photos
2024 Strategic Plan Progress
We made great progress across all categories in our strategic plan:
Site Stewardship
Expanded into Blount/Delway lots and transformed the site in three months
Strengthened crop and climate resilience practices with a greater focus on soil health
Harvested ~13,000 lbs. of food
Education and Engagement
Hosted 142 workdays, tours, workshops, events and program outreach to deepen participants’ knowledge of regenerative agriculture and forge community bonds
Leadership Development
Hosted nine interns; one-third received course credit and one-third have continued to volunteer beyond their internships
Recruited six new members including a board apprentice with robust diversity metrics across age, gender, race and skill sets
Resource Development
Future Farms Fund launched with $113K in gifts and pledges
YOY revenue growth of 50%
Year-end cash position of ~$170K or six months of operating expense
Food Insecurity & Access
6,394 lbs of food donated through Farmshare program — 50% of our yield
Welcomed Feed the Pack as a new partner
Hosted 28 Pay-What-You-Can Farmstand with 1,300 customer visits
Launched Phase One of Future Farms Plan with expansion of Blount/Delway lots to increase the impact of our mission