Moving a farm with a forklift may sound outlandish, but Sole Food Street Farms plans to do exactly that.
The small social enterprise is gearing up to relocate its farm beside False Creek, the largest of its three sites, in late October. Administrative director Matthew Johnstone says the move should be straightforward because Sole Foods’ farms, which produce about 25 tons of fruits and vegetables a year to supply Vancouver restaurants and farmers’ markets, were built with portability in mind.
Moving has “always been part of the plan,” Johnstone says, noting that the farm grows its food above ground in planter boxes specifically designed to be moved with a forklift.
The farm at 88 Pacific Blvd. is sitting on a lot owned by development company Concord Pacific. Sole Food moved onto the lot in 2012 with the expectation of staying for three years, but has been able to stay for five. Now its time is up.
Come late October, Sole Food will vacate and move approximately 2,000 growing boxes, along with offices and support infrastructure, to an as-yet unannounced city-owned location with the help of the aforementioned forklift and a flatbed truck.
The exact fate of the lot is still muddy. Concord Pacific wouldn’t provide Westender with information about its plans, and Johnstone said he didn’t know anything about the lot’s future.
It’s located in the hotly contested former Expo ’86 lands, where there have been plans for a park expansion since 1990. According to the Park Board’s draft park design from 2017, it looks like Vancouverites can expect condo towers where once there was a farm.
The move will cost Sole Foods about $125,000, which Johnstone says is a “significant part” of the organization’s yearly operating budget. To help offset the cost, the organization will be hosting an outdoor movie night on Sept. 6.
Johnstone says they will be screening A New Economy, a documentary film that features Sole Food Street Farms and the work it does in providing employment to some of Vancouver’s most vulnerable residents, the majority of whom live in the Downtown Eastside.
When asked how the move would impact these employees, Johnstone said he’s confident it will work out, even though he can’t yet reveal the new location for the farm.
“We feel that this move will be a good one for Sole Food Street Farms,” he says. “It’s quite unusual for a farm to move,” he adds, but it’s to be expected when you “occupy lands that are ultimately going to be developed.”
• Cinema Under the Stars: A Fundraiser for Sole Food Street Farms, screening A New Economy; Sept. 6, 7-10 p.m., 88 Pacific Blvd.; Tickets $15 suggested donation, available online or at the door; include food and drink, limited number of guided farm tours, book signing and a preshow by Vancouver’s The Carnival Band. All proceeds go to Cultivate Canada, the registered charity that owns Sole Food Street Farms.
