January 16, 2013 | Robert Puro

To highlight the growth and importance of urban agriculture in the U.S., Seedstock hosted a panel on Urban Agriculture and Local Food Systems at the company’s recent Seedstock Sustainable Agriculture Innovation conference. The panel explored the social and economic impact of farming in the city as well as the various methods and technologies being employed to support such endeavors. It featured the following panelists: Jesse DuBois of Farmscape, the largest urban farming venture in Southern California; David Rosenstein of EVO Farm, an urban farming organization utilizing aquaponics to grow food; Rickey Smith of Urban Green, an urban farming enterprise dedicated to restoring, developing and promoting “green space” within the communities it serves; and Rachel Surls, the Sustainable Food Systems Advisor for University of California Cooperative Extension in Los Angeles County, part of UC’s Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The panel was moderated by Dan Allen of Farmscape.