Despite being known as “The Peach State”, it is remarkably difficult for some residents of Georgia to find fresh fruit.  

A 2023 report from Emory University uncovered that a quarter of Atlanta’s residents live more than a half a mile away from a store selling fresh produce. And while small food stores are abundant in the city’s disadvantaged neighbourhoods, fewer than half sell fresh fruit and vegetables.  

Atlanta is not unique in the US for its lack of grocery stores. The most recent data from the US Department of Agriculture revealed that 53 million Americans live in “food deserts” without easy access to affordable fresh produce. Not so coincidentally, these areas also suffer from high levels of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and micro-nutrient deficiencies.  

But while Atlanta’s residents suffer from the same lack of food security as many other US cities, they are also planting solutions.  Just four miles from downtown Atlanta, an innovative public park is sprouting new life and new hope for residents in a historically underserved area. The Urban Food Forest at Browns Mill, the largest public food forest in the country, is transforming a once-abandoned family farm into a vibrant source of fresh food, education, and community engagement. 

This 7.1-acre project is the result of a unique partnership between The Conservation Fund, the City of Atlanta’s Office of Sustainability and Resilience, the Department of Parks and Recreation, and Trees Atlanta. Built on principles of agroforestry, the food forest integrates fruit and nut trees, herb gardens, and vegetable plots into a sustainable urban ecosystem. It also supports wildlife and pollinators, improves air and water quality, and mitigates flooding— – all while producing nutritious food for the surrounding neighbourhood. 

“This isn’t just a park,” said a representative from The Conservation Fund. “It’s a comprehensive approach to conservation, education, and equity.” 

More than 100 fruit trees and 30 community garden beds have already been planted. Educational programs in gardening, cooking, and environmental science now serve hundreds of local students. Through a partnership with Greening Youth Foundation, residents have also participated in paid workforce development programmes, gaining green job skills while helping build the forest. 

The Urban Food Forest at Browns Mill is quickly becoming a model for cities nationwide, showing how, with the right partnerships and community involvement, even neglected land can be transformed into something that nourishes both people and the environment. 

Sidewalks and rooftops 

Urban food solutions aren’t just for cities with sprawling vacant land. A new report from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), The Edible City: Why Food Trees Matter, makes a compelling case for planting fruit and nut trees in even the most built-up environments, turning streets, parks, and rooftops into productive green spaces. 

The report champions food trees as a powerful, nature-based fix for some of the most pressing urban challenges of food insecurity, climate change, and community fragmentation. As cities grow and food systems stretch thin, UNECE positions urban agroforestry not as a fringe idea, but as smart policy with wide-reaching impact. 

Topping the list of benefits is better access to fresh, local produce. By trimming reliance on far-flung supply chains and boosting nutrition where people live, orchards can help make city diets healthier and more secure. 

UNECE also highlights their aesthetic appeal. Planted with purpose, food trees can turn dull, concrete-heavy neighbourhoods into vibrant, liveable places that people are proud to call home. With public demand rising for greener, healthier spaces, urban food trees are gaining traction— – not just as a sustainability tool, but as a design feature developers and city leaders can’t ignore. 

Paris offers a striking example. On the rooftops of the 15th arrondissement, the Agropolis farm spans the size of two football pitches and produces around 1,000kg of fresh produce daily. Residents subscribe to weekly veg boxes, and local hotels buy direct. Despite limited space, the farm’s lead engineer believes that if more rooftops, parks, and vacant lots were used, Paris could grow 10% of its total fruit and vegetable supply within the city. 

Cities across Europe are also rethinking the role of trees in their urban environments. In Andernach, Germany, known as “The Edible City,” public green spaces have been transformed into open-access orchards where residents are encouraged to harvest apples, grapes and herbs for free. Even in dense urban areas, like Oosterwold in the Netherlands, policies now require residents to use half of their property for food production, integrating edible landscapes directly into residential planning. These cities, like Atlanta, demonstrate how food-producing trees can be used to close gaps in food access and create more equitable, sustainable urban ecosystems. 

As the global population becomes increasingly urban, the pressure to feed cities in sustainable, locally rooted ways will only intensify. Whether planted in vacant lots, along sidewalks, or on rooftops, fruit and nut trees can help cities build resilience from the ground up