Growing Power

Growing Power
Name	Growing Power
Formation	1993
Founder	Will Allen
Dissolved	2017
Headquarters	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Focus	Urban agriculture, community development, food systems

Growing Power

Growing Power was an urban agriculture nonprofit founded in 1993 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that operated demonstration farms, training programs, and distribution networks to promote local food production, food security, and sustainable agriculture practices. It became notable for integrating aquaponics, composting, and market-oriented production while engaging with a range of partners including municipal agencies, philanthropic foundations, and community organizations. The organization’s trajectory intersected with broader movements and figures in urban food systems such as Ron Finley, Will Allen, and policy initiatives addressing food access in Milwaukee and other North American cities.

History

Founded by Will Allen in 1993 after his career as a professional athlete and urban farmer, the organization expanded from a single demonstration site to a nationally recognized model that drew visits from municipal leaders, nonprofit directors, and academics. Early collaborations linked the group to networks around Slow Food, USDA programs, and community land trusts; later high-profile engagements included speaking events at TED, features in The New York Times, and partnerships with universities such as University of Wisconsin–Madison. By the 2000s the organization had launched multiple urban farms and a training curriculum that attracted international delegations from cities like Detroit, Chicago, and Toronto. Financial and legal difficulties culminated in bankruptcy filings and closure of core operations in the mid-2010s, with legacy programs absorbed or replicated by entities including local food co-ops, municipal urban agriculture offices, and nonprofit successors.

Mission and Model

The stated mission combined food justice, youth development, and sustainable production, situating production close to underserved neighborhoods and linking production to retail via farmers’ markets and institutional procurement. The organizational model emphasized demonstration, education, and enterprise, drawing on precedents from CSA initiatives, cooperative food distribution, and farm-to-institution movements such as Farm to School and Farm to Hospital programs. Will Allen’s leadership style and public persona shaped advocacy efforts that engaged policymakers at the city and state levels, while the model aimed to be replicable across contexts from Atlanta to Vancouver.

Urban Agriculture Techniques

Practices showcased at the organization’s sites included raised-bed horticulture, greenhouse production, year-round hoop houses, aquaponics systems combining fish and vegetable culture, and large-scale composting operations using municipal and market organics. Crop planning incorporated heirloom and specialty varieties used in farmers’ markets, and techniques aimed to intensify yields per square foot similar to models promoted by urban growers like Ron Finley and organizations such as Black Urban Growers. The model also employed pest-management approaches rooted in integrated pest management frameworks and soil-building strategies associated with permaculture practitioners and agroecology researchers.

Projects and Facilities

Key facilities included an urban demonstration farm in Milwaukee that hosted market stalls, an on-site composting operation, greenhouses, and training classrooms; satellite projects and replication efforts appeared in cities including Chicago, Detroit, Madison, Minneapolis, and Toronto. The organization initiated food distribution projects supplying farmers’ markets and institutional buyers, and pilot programs that linked urban production to school cafeterias and community kitchens. Collaborations with academic research groups produced case studies and technical guides for urban growers, and visiting delegations from municipal food policy councils and nonprofit networks studied the sites.

Community Impact and Education

Educational programming targeted youth, unemployed adults, and aspiring urban farmers through internships, apprenticeships, and short courses; curricula addressed practical skills, business development, and leadership, mirroring workforce-development strategies used by community-based organizations and land-grant extension programs. Community engagement included partnerships with neighborhood associations, faith-based organizations, and food co-ops to increase access to fresh produce and promote nutrition education similar to programs run by Feeding America affiliates and municipal food policy offices. Alumni of training programs have gone on to start farms, restaurants, and social enterprises, contributing to regional food-system diversification.

Funding and Partnerships

Funding derived from a mix of earned income (market sales, wholesale accounts), philanthropic grants from foundations tied to urban resilience and food systems, and public-sector contracts or in-kind support from municipal agencies. Partnerships encompassed collaborations with universities, healthcare institutions seeking local procurement, and nonprofit networks focused on food access and youth employment. Major philanthropic and institutional actors in the broader urban agriculture ecosystem that engaged with or funded similar initiatives include entities like the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, municipal departments of health and environment, and national technical assistance programs.

Criticisms and Challenges

Critiques included questions about financial sustainability of the enterprise model, governance and management practices under a strong founding leader, scalability of intensive production techniques in diverse urban contexts, and tensions between demonstration goals and commercial operations. Investigations and media reporting in the 2010s highlighted accounting, payroll, and administrative problems that eroded donor and partner confidence, prompting legal and financial restructuring. Scholars and practitioners studying urban agriculture have used the case to examine issues of organizational transparency, equitable labor practices, and the gap between high-visibility advocacy and long-term operational viability.

Category:Urban agriculture organizations Category:Non-profit organizations based in Wisconsin