Committee hears urban agriculture testimonies emphasizing land access, indoor farming and equity

The Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on an afternoon hearing heard urban farmers and industry representatives describe how land access, long-term tenure and workforce training are central to expanding food security across New Jersey.

Lana Mustafa, executive director of Montclair Community Farms, told the committee her organization sells thousands of pounds of produce each year at below-market prices and accepts SNAP, WIC and FMNP. "Land is not just property. It's culture. It's memory. It's community and it's survival," Mustafa said, and she described losing a productive 12-year site to development because the farm did not own the land. Mustafa said the organization is upgrading a wooden farm stand to a refrigerated truck with support from an NJ Feed grant and hopes to double distribution by 2027. She recommended long-term leases—"anywhere from 10 to 15 years"—to enable the investments needed for perennial crops, irrigation and compost infrastructure.

Desmond Hayes, owner of GeoGreens, described an indoor hydroponic vertical-farm model that he said can provide year-round, pesticide‑free produce for food‑insecure neighborhoods and create workforce pathways through partnerships with the College of New Jersey and IA Labs. Hayes estimated that water is largely recirculated in his systems and said "you could say anywhere between 80 to 90%" water savings compared with conventional field irrigation. He also said smaller facilities (he cited a prior 2,500‑square‑foot site) can be productive—about a ton of produce a month in his example—and that automation and AI can boost efficiency if paired with trained staff.

Manatee Smith, with Producers 1 Agriculture Group and Sustainable Solutions, framed urban agriculture as an equity issue. Smith described work in Trenton to rewrite short-term municipal leases into five-year terms so growers can plan for sustainability. She said a collaborative of urban growers finds "equity gaps are baked into the policy, funding and workforce systems" and urged that stakeholders be included in oversight of changes such as the Shirley Turner bill so resources reach intended recipients.

David DeFranz, chair of the state board’s urban agriculture committee, read a USDA‑style definition that includes rooftop farms, hydroponics, aeroponics, aquaponics and vertical production and said the state board will study how to better define and connect rural and urban producers. He invited committee members to engage with the board’s ongoing work to identify available land, regulatory barriers and opportunities for collaboration.

Committee members pressed witnesses on implementation details: how mobile markets identify neighborhoods (Mustafa cited food‑desert areas and senior housing), the economics of controlled‑environment agriculture (Hayes urged experienced operators and proper maintenance), and what municipal regulations or incentives might be missing. Witnesses repeatedly raised land security and zoning restrictions—such as limits on building greenhouses—as barriers to scaling urban farms.

The committee did not take formal action on the Shirley Turner bill during the hearing; members moved later in the meeting to consider separate legislative items. The state board and witness organizations said they will continue to provide data and recommendations to the committee as it works to clarify definitions, land‑access tools and workforce supports.

The hearing concluded after lawmakers released several bills (see separate article for votes).