4th Generation Farmer Helps Youth Flunking Out of School to Grow and Sell Food for Disadvantaged in Minnesota

August 7, 2024 journo

Marcus Carpenter, the founder of Route 1, stands alongside a farmer in Medina, Minnesota.

A fourth-generation Black American farmer is bringing 21st-century agriculture into the lives of youth from marginalized communities, teaching them how to grow and sell nutritious food to the people who need it.

Marcus Carpenter is the founder of Route 1, an organization that focuses on introducing farming to people, and farmers to the people, through a variety of educational and business programs with a focus on addressing the challenges facing the poorest communities in Minnesota.

Carpenter grew up on 180 acres of farmland in Arkansas, bought by his great-grandmother Sally in 1914, who worked the land down a dirt road in a country house with 13 children.

Route 1 was the name of that old dirt road, but its approach to agriculture is anything but old.

The programs and facilities include the “Freight Farm” where hydroponic gardens grow a variety of food inside donated shipping containers equivalent to 4 acres of farmland. It includes the Emerging Farmers Institute, offering intensive virtual coursework on the fundamentals of farming, while also including sessions aimed at tackling the most commonly faced mental stressors of working in agriculture.

Additionally, Route 1 offers the Seeds to Success Youth Academy, where youth struggling in school can find alternatives to flunking out by pursuing agricultural excellence.

Local farmer Vitalis Tita of Better Greens LLC at the Route 1 Farmers Market in summer 2023.

One such a success story is Anthony Rasmussen—born into a low-income family, and raised by a single mom. Route 1 had made itself known inside the school district, and Rasmussen was enrolled in the academy.

He was part of the team that helped grow part of the 7,000 lbs of produce that Route 1 recently delivered to two local community organizations.

This experience sparked Rasmussen’s interest in pursuing a career in agriculture. He realized that farming is not just about being outdoors, which he loves, but also about helping people and making a difference.

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In Minnesota, 1 in 15 people experience food insecurity. The situation is worse for communities of color, with Black residents facing a staggering rate of 1 in 4. The Seeds to Success program wraps up on August 14th; most of the 7 students in the program come from these disadvantaged backgrounds.

Callin Bosire and Jane Onchiri from Lisaviole Organic Farm, at the Route 1 Farmers Market in the summer of 2023.

Addressing this, Carpenter has incorporated a small variety of African crops that can tolerate Minnesota’s soil and weather, adding a cultural component that he believes helps drive home the point that working the land and reaping the rewards is the birthright and benefit of all mankind.

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Route 1 also diligently supports a new sustainable business model known as “community-supported agriculture,” or CSA, by helping farmers in the Route 1 network access local businesses like restaurants and large-scale cafeterias to sell their produce.

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