It was in the early days of the pandemic that Quinta Jackson Burns realized she had to learn how to grow her own food. “I had six kids to feed, mine and my brother’s children, but there was nothing on the shelves at the grocery store.
“After that experience, I was determined to learn how to grow my own food to feed my family and others in the community,” the Ward 7 resident said. “The food system is very fragile, and if you live in an underresourced community, you will go without food.”
On Saturday, April 19, Burns will be the first participant of the University of the District of Columbia’s Beginning Farmers program to sell produce at the UDC Van Ness Farmers Market. She will join dozens of other vendors outside the Student Center at 4200 Connecticut Ave., NW, to sell everything from collards to Brussels sprouts to corn and zucchini.
The market pops up each Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., until Dec. 6, serving community members across the region with an array of fruits and vegetables, prepared foods, artisan-made goods, live entertainment and information on local resources. UDC launched the farmers market in 2013 with just a handful of vendors. Today, it’s home to dozens and pulls in upwards of 1,000 patrons when the weather accommodates.
“We’re hoping to get more live musical acts to participate on Saturdays, so residents can spend hours at the farmers market,” said Andrew Blunk, project specialist for urban agriculture at UDC. “And we’re so proud to host one of our Beginning Farmers as a vendor for the very first time. Quinta is proof that residents can learn and thrive as novice farmers.”
Blunk has managed the farmers market since fall 2023 with help from faculty, staff and students at the College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences (CAUSES), including this year's Farmers Market Intern Rolfe Taber Merren. The college’s goal is to spread the gospel of urban agriculture.
“Our mission is to create a pathway for DMV residents to learn about, experiment with, and incorporate more produce and organic foods into their diets,” said CAUSES Dean Dwane Jones. “Our vendors and farmers are not average, nor are they ordinary. They are extraordinary people, doing extraordinary things, for this extraordinary campus community.”
For Burns, who earned a law degree at UDC in 2012, the farming journey began when she volunteered at the UDC Community College at Lamond-Riggs to learn about hydroponic systems. When applications opened for spots at the UDC Firebird Farm in Beltsville, Maryland, Burns jumped at the chance to grow her farming skills.
“I had tried gardening on my own, but it was a disaster,” Burns laughed. “But look how I’ve grown! My daughter Chaeli and I plan to grow a food forest in Wards 7 and 8, and show others how to farm. Eventually, we’ll have a food forest where residents can pick their own free produce.”
Burns can barely contain her excitement about selling at the UDC Van Ness Farmers Market. “This is the first step in helping my community eat healthier,” she shared. “Everyone deserves fresh, organic food. Our mission is to provide fresh, locally sourced produce to the DMV, especially Wards 7 and 8. It leads to better health outcomes.”