the pitch.

In America, over an acre of farmland is lost every minute.*  With the increasing appeal of urban living and pop culture’s rediscovery of fresh food, urbanites are planting farms and gardens throughout cities. In the midst of this agricultural renewal, contaminated soils and vanishing garden space compel farmers, activists, and restaurateurs to look toward the skyline for a food solution.  Rooftops provide the space that cities need to grow fresh veggies close to home.

Eat Up| The Inside Scoop on Rooftop Agriculture will be the first book publication dedicated entirely to rooftop agriculture.  This three-part series provides a practitioner’s view of how to turn dreams of rooftop farms and gardens into actual spaces that feed people.  Each volume digs into the nuts and bolts of rooftop agriculture for either home gardeners (volume one), entrepreneurs and restaurateurs (volume two), and policy makers and academics (volume three).  All three volumes operate under the Eat Up brand.

The goal of Eat Up is twofold: to act as the pivotal voice of a movement, and to empower people to bring fresh kale, tomatoes, and beets to tables across America.  With inspirational photographs of rooftop farms, interviews with skyline farmers, and insider strategies, Eat Up provides readers with the practical tools they need to feed their stomachs and their souls.

Rooftop agriculture is not a fad – it is the future of our urban food system.

* U.S. Department of Agriculture. 2009. Summary Report: 2007 National Resources Inventory. Natural Resources Conservation Service, Washington, DC, and Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA.