Who we Are
Everyone deserves healthy food.
Shalom Farms is a nonprofit working together to build healthy communities by growing and sharing healthy food.
The food we grow is distributed through our network of programs and partnerships in communities where access to healthy food is limited.
Our History
Shalom Farms is the evolution of the work of the United Methodist Urban Ministries of Richmond (UMUMR) which has a long history of social service work in Richmond. In 2009 UMUMR started a pilot project growing food on just half an acre at Westview on the James in Goochland. As the impact of the project quickly became clear, the organization decided to focus exclusively on food access work and eventually changed its name to Shalom Farms.
In 2016, we relocated our primary growing site from Goochland to a larger, more accessible 12 acre farm in Powhatan, only 20 minutes west of Richmond. We have since added a second five-acre site in Richmond’s Northside on Union Presbyterian Seminary’s Westwood Tract. This expansion has allowed us to evolve from distributing just a few thousand pounds of produce a year to local food banks, to a comprehensive range of food access programs and strategies that serve over 10,000 community members annually.
Our Work in Action
Learn more about programs helping thousands of Richmond families overcome barriers in the food system.
We are Rooted in People.
We are hard-working, community-minded people, passionate about providing healthy food access to all.