13 Apr 2009

URBAN FARMING IN GOTHENBURG

The ground around the church in Högsbo is no longer a usual lawn. From far you see exposed black soil and the former grass turned into a muddy mess.
Responsible for that is Högsbos three new habitants. Under a big ashtree they´re having their lunch of apple and potatoes under loud amused noice.Måla, Sötnos and Vovven are the first agriculture pigs in Gothenburg since second world war, and their presence is now transforming the church´s land into twenty urban farming lots.
-They are the most rational way of getting this done, explains NiklasWennberg, project leader at Stadsjord, the organisation that initialized the project. The pigs works up the soil, defeats weed and gives a superiorground nutrition. In May we will move them and let people start cultivate the land.



Niklas Wennberg with one of the pigs.

More than 350 people had come to give the pigs a warm welcome when theyarrived in the beginning of March.-
People just love them! ”Pig” is now the most frequent search phrase on themunicipals webpage, and this has really changed the centre of gravity inthe city core. People walk by, stops, chats and watch the pigs, says Niklas.

The arrival of the pigs is the result of an interreligious collaboration in Gothenburg where leaders of all different world religions together isworking for integration and a sustainable future. To grow in the city was concidered the most important measure to handle integration as well as humans awareness in global warming. They asked Niklas Wennberg, with abackground in environmental science, to be come a project leader andtogether they formed Stadsjord.
This autumn the produce of growers work will be sold at Axel Dahlströms square.


-This is the only growers association in Gothenburg that clearly says that you are aloud to sell your surplus, explains Niklas. Normally it´s forbidden.This is really very important. If we want urban farming to become anactual part of the future, we can not follow old rules that aims to keepthe big food store free from local competition. Such a rule is only aresult of a human decision. That shows the opportunity to make other decisions!

Read more at Stadsjord


1 comment:

  1. Hi,

    I really like your article about Gotheburg's pigs. It reminds me a little of the sheep used in Curitiba which I recently wrote about on my website.

    ReplyDelete