Green business spotlight: London’s largest food producing rooftop garden is bearing fruit
A Dalston cafe’s bid to transform its unused rooftop into a food producing haven is bearing fruit in the community as the business continues to take major steps in tackling climate challenges within the hospitality industry.
Since April 2022, the Sky Farm at Brunswick East has been serving thousands of plates heaped with organic food grown on-site of its Gillett Street rooftop, as well as facilitating free food growing workshops for the community.
The business was awarded just over £36,000 via the Hackney High Streets and Town Centres Fund, one of three major schemes under the business grants programme, to ensure a fair recovery from the coronavirus pandemic for the borough’s businesses.
“Our Sky Farm has increased our ability to create stronger circular ties between our Dalston cafe where the Sky Farm is based and our Hackney Downs bakery whereby we now are able to supply 100% of our garnish needs, as well as regular crops-grown baked goods. This closed loop system within our business gives us incredible resilience, reduces waste and provides education and exposure to urban growth across our wider team.
“The direct impact in reducing our carbon footprint through less produce deliveries on site, increasing our urban resilience and transforming our landscape into a significant and active green space has been completely transformative for our business. The rooftop itself also presents roughly 3,000sq ft of unused inner city space that has been physically transformed from an empty area to an active, alive and green space. This in itself presents a major step in meeting our net zero target.”
The team at Brunswick East have also been working to create an inclusive platform to facilitate a wide audience interacting with the Sky Farm through various workshops designed hand-in-hand with their community engagement partners Okra.
To keep in the loop with future workshops and events at Brunswick East’s Sky Farm visit their website.
For more information about business in the borough, contact business@hackney.gov.uk