Page 31 - The Valley Table - Fall 2021
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                                  Cultivating a mere half-acre plot of the Black Dirt, Choy Division is on a singular mission to produce Asian heritage vegetables.
The Black Dirt region was famous for growing onions in the late 20th century, but farmers in the area have since started organically farming a variety
of vegetables, like lettuce, carrots, squash, and radishes.
Farm operator Christina Chan is cultivating her land to grow organic produce that Asian Americans across New York can’t easily find. She accomplishes this through a CSA available in the Hudson Valley and New York City. The program
is marketed via churches and food pantries in English and Chinese, so that language is never a barrier. Korean and Japanese outreach are in the works.
“Our goal is not just to grow food, but to expand the representation of Asian people throughout our local food system,” says Chan.
Chan aims to offer Asian Americans the ability to eat organically without giving up who they are culturally. Her crops include bok choy, gai choi, and black futsu squash. In fact, the farm’s name is a play on words: “Choy” means “vegetable” in Cantonese,
and Joy Division is a rock band that reminds Chan of her time farming in the United Kingdom.
“I was inspired to start farming
while I was living there,” Chan says, describing her experience volunteering at an urban farm. “I realized I could use food and farming as a way to empower people to make better decisions for their own health and also for the environment.”
Our goal is not just to grow food, but to expand the representation of Asian people throughout our local food system.
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