Corbin Hill Food Project to open Harlem market this summer, aims to connect Black and Indigenous farmers to city buyers

Yi Garcia, director of programs and innovation at Corbin Hill Food Project, told Open she works "on the ground" connecting Black and Indigenous farmers with urban communities and designing programs around fresh, culturally relevant food. Garcia said Corbin Hill began with land ownership upstate and pivoted toward a virtual food hub model that now includes plans for physical market spaces and community skillshares.

Garcia described several program elements: a new market scheduled to open this summer on 140th and Frederick Douglass in Harlem where residents can buy produce grown by Black and Indigenous farmers; value-added work to turn surplus produce into jams, pickles, kimchi and sauces to cut food waste; and a medically tailored meals project, designed with a registered dietitian, offering prepared meals for people with health conditions (she cited an example menu of baked jerk chicken thighs with rice and peas).

She linked these initiatives to social determinants of health and noted high health disparities in the Bronx audience the program serves, saying the Bronx ranks "number 62 out of 62 in health rankings" in the context of the conversation. Garcia framed Corbin Hill's approach as ancestral preservation of cooking knowledge and skillshares that teach seasoning and preparation alongside produce distribution.

Garcia invited listeners to visit the storefront and follow Corbin Hill Food Project online; she listed the organization's website and Instagram presence (Corbin Hill Food Project).