'Farm In A Box' Planting The Seeds Of Urban Revitalization
WEST SACRAMENTO (CBS13) -- It's not a meal in a box – it's an entire farm in a box.
This shipping container in West Sacramento is packed with high-tech farming tools.
Call it an agricultural "transformer." A container arrives at a site and quickly transforms into a complete farming system.
"Each unit is powered by an off-grid power system," said Farm from a Box's founding partner Brandi DeCarli.
Solar panels power cold storage for vegetables and the watering system. Built-in Wi-Fi turns the whole farm into a "hot spot."
People can use their phones to check how their crops are doing and which areas need watering.
So, boom, instant farm?
Not quite.
DeCarli says you still need two key ingredients.
"Just add people. Just add people and seeds. We often get the question of, 'Does it come with seeds?'" DeCarli said.
The answer is "no." Local farmers decide what to grow.
In West Sacramento, those farmers are refugees who moved to this area from Iraq, Afghanistan and Nepal. They worked with the International Rescue Committee and chose what seeds to plant.
Each farmer can rent a 50'x50' plot. The cost to rent that land is just $10 a month.
Farmers grow food to feed their families and quickly turn a profit by selling the rest.
The folks at Farm from a Box say they're just getting started. Their plan more boxes like this one and more farms all over the world.
"There's a number of ways it can make a big difference," DeCarli said. "Even down to just turning an unproductive lot into an urban oasis."
You can visit the farm at Lighthouse and fountain drives in West Sacramento every Saturday during the growing season.
