The farmers bringing their fields indoors

The Philadelphia Zoo has created an in-house, vertical garden – housed in a shipping container provided by the nonprofit, CropBox – to grow food for the animals. So far, it has shown to be a more sustainable way of feeding the animals, producing 275 lbs of greens per month and using 70-90% less water than traditional farming. The garden is just one of the zoo’s newest sustainability initiatives, which include increasing energy efficiency, using solar-powered vehicles, and creating more trails and spaces for the animals.

Los Angeles-based nonprofit Food Forward was born out of the observation that many farmers are growing more fruit than they can sell at market. To cut down on food waste and get these viable fruits into the hands of people that are food insecure, Food Forward operates as the "transfer point between donors and receiving agencies," while also coordinating volunteers to forage the local farms and farmers markets.

Brazil's small farmers can now directly supply the country's school meals programs. It's been a big boost for local farmers, and it's helping the schools too.

Urban farms across the United States are bringing affordable, fresh, and healthy foods to communities facing food insecurity and are forming connections with residents along the way.

Dig Deep Farms provides sustainable jobs for people coming out of jail, who have a difficult time finding work. The farm employs about 15 people who grow food for county health initiatives, runs a job-training program for formerly incarcerated people, and operates a food hub to distribute fresh produce to people in need and recently increased its acreage to provide even more opportunities and resources.

In an attempt to offer healthier meals and reduce stigma around hospital food, hospitals are reinventing their dining services by hiring professional chefs, nutritionists, and dieticians. At the UC Davis Medical Center, this type of approach has already shown success with a growth in consumers, including an influx of locals from the community even coming to eat at the hospital cafe.

Emerald Garden farm in Colorado is a microgreens hydroponic farming operation that is using a comprehensive approach toward conducting business. From experimenting with new practices to reduce food waste to diversifying partnerships to enhance crop development, the owners have successfully scaled the initial operation and are providing food for fine restaurants as well as grocery stores a local school district and potentially hospitals.

Mound Bayou, Mississippi has been in the middle of a food desert for well over 50 years, as fresh produce is hard to come by for this small Mississippi Delta town. However, a local farmers' market has begun to change that; run by youth volunteers, the market brings fresh fruit and vegetables to residents through the Delta Fresh Foods Initiative.

A direct line from local producer to consumer reduces carbon emissions and strengthens community food systems. A partnership between farming tech company Square Roots and Gordon Food Services aims to create local food supply chains by placing cargo-container hydroponic farms directly at store sites and distribution centers. The plan is inspired by the success of Square Roots’ container farms in Brooklyn, NY.

The Karurumo Self-Help Group in Kenya initially started as a way to avoid agriculture exploitation. However, it has now evolved into a way to reduce post-harvest waste through the implementation of value addition and produce processing.