Urban Agriculture

Urban Agriculture and A Greener New Orleans Campaign

The Office of Resilience and Sustainability established an Urban Agriculture Liaison role in late October 2024. This position was created from the dedicated advocacy of A Greener New Orleans campaign members, including Sprout NOLA, the New Orleans Food Policy Council (NOFPC), Greater New Orleans Growers’ Alliance (GNOGA), Louisiana Progress, and many others. Thanks to this committed group of urban farmers and food system enthusiasts, the Office of Resilience and Sustainability will be collaborating more deeply with the grower community to support urban farming and strengthen our local food system.  

Read the full Greener New Orleans Platform here

Need urban agriculture support? Complete this request form here

Food production is a central part of both causing greenhouse gas emissions and a critical part of addressing the climate crisis. There is a long history of people growing their own food in New Orleans, and especially of Black urban gardeners and farmers. We encourage everyone to read this important article by Pamela Broom, Yuki Kato, and Shawn ‘Pepper’ Roussel titled ‘Rewriting the Erased History of Blacks in New Orleans Urban Garden and Farming’ for historical context and the local reality of urban gardening today.  

There are endless benefits of urban agriculture including that it builds community, improves physical and mental health, can help maintain cultural food ways and practices, beautifies neighborhoods, can mitigate flooding and the heat island effect, and much more.  

A Greener New Orleans Campaign Planks

Our office has been advancing the other A Greener New Orleans’ (AGNO) planks: 

  1. Land Access – collaborate with New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA) to improve the Growing Green program and establish a more transparent process for accessing land for agriculture use.  

  1. Water Access – work with Sewerage & Water Board (SWBNO) to develop guide for growers to get agricultural use meters (also known as “irrigation only”) and establish training for SWBNO to ensure proper billing for gardens/farms. 

  1. Blight Citation – work with Code Enforcement to prevent gardens/farms from getting blight citations for practicing good land stewardship practices and establish a more fair and transparent process for requiring the removal of blight from urban gardens/farms. 

    • Updates:

      • May 2025 - ORS created and distributed about 35 "Regenerative Garden in Progress" yard signs to farms and gardens around town to help educate neighbors on their gardening practices. The QR code on the sign brings residents to this page: What is Regenerative Agriculture?

      • ​August 2025 - ORS hosted a plant identification training, in partnership with the LSU Agriculture Extension Service, for the Department of Code Enforcement focused on properly identifying regenerative agriculture practices like cover crops and native plants. 

      • October 2025 - In partnership with Councilmember Harris' office, ORS passed the Cover Crop Ordinance which adds cover crops to the 10 inch weed height exemption to reduce inaccurate code violations for farms and gardens and to promote regenerative agriculture. 

Community Accountability Measures

These planks were developed out of thorough needs assessments of growers and urban farmers in New Orleans. To ensure community accountability and that the Urban Agriculture Liaison stays aligned with the original intentions behind the role, the Office of Resilience and Sustainability will also be: 

  • Establishing an Urban Agriculture Working Group (UAWG). The UAWG is made up of growers, community leaders, and food policy advocates from across the city. The UAWG was launched in March 2025. For more information, go to https://nola.gov/urbanagworkinggroup.

Guides and Resources for Urban Growers

Our Urban Agriculture Liaison, in collaboration with community partners such as Sprout NOLA and NOFPC and various city departments, is in the process of creating user-friendly guides for growers. You’ll be able to find them here as they’re completed.  

  • NEW! Urban Animal Husbandry Basics
    • ​The Office of Resilience & Sustainability developed this document to break down the current regulations around keeping farm animals in Orleans Parish. 
  • NEW! Farm Business Document Checklist
    • Sprout NOLA, with support from the Office of Resilience & Sustainability, developed this New Farm Business Document Checklist to support market farmers in getting in compliance with all city and state regulatory bodies. It's a step by step process to getting started as a farm business and includes some helpful programs and agencies to reach out to for additional support. 
    • These processes sometimes change. Please let us know if you run into anything inaccurate or if you have any questions by emailing urbanag@nola.gov. 
  • NEW! Water Access Guide for Gardens & Farms 
    • ​Are you a grower trying to get affordable and consistent water from Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans?
    • Did you know you can get an "Irrigation Only" water meter? This means you only pay for irrigation, not sewerage or sanitation fees. 
    • Check out the guide linked above for more information

If you are a grower/gardener/farmer in New Orleans who is having trouble navigating any city process (permitting, SWBNO agricultural water meter, etc.), please fill out this Urban Agriculture Support Request Form below.

 

If you have any other ideas, questions, or suggestions, please reach out to our Urban Agriculture Liaison, Grace Treffinger. Email: grace.treffinger@nola.gov. Phone: 504-905-0402.