Rooting for growth.

Capital Roots started in 1975 as a community service project of Garden Way, the former manufacturer of Troy-Bilt Lawn and Garden Equipment.Today, the organization connects people and communities with the knowledge and resources to improve their well-being. Capital Roots works to reduce the impact of poor nutrition on public health in New York’s Capital Region by organizing community gardens, providing healthy food access, offering nutritional and horticultural education for all ages and coordinating urban greening programs in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady and southern Saratoga Counties.In 2015 Capital Roots built The Urban Grow Center in Troy, NY, a regional food hub where the power of local agriculture is being channeled for the social, economic, and physical benefits of the entire Capital Region. Through increased and improved produce storage and distribution capacity, the Urban Grow Center enables Capital Roots to supply more people with more food from local farms, improving access to nutritious food in urban areas while helping regional farmers cost-effectively reach new markets. The facility also includes a produce stand which serves a neighborhood without access to fresh food. Other Capital Roots programs have a direct impact on the health of Capital Region residents, including:

• Taste Good SeriesWhere staffers and volunteers bring fresh fruits and vegetables right into the classroom to introduce as options.
• Veggie MobileA produce food truck that travels into neighborhoods with little access to farm fresh food. It operates like a farmer’s market on wheels.
• The Produce ProjectA year-round training program for underprivileged youth. Students are given a stipend and school credit for operating three acres of farmland
• Community Gardens50 plots throughout the Capital Region that are used to grow fresh produce.