UJAMAA COOPERATIVE FARMING ALLIANCE

The Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance (UCFA) is a program of the 501c3 non-profit STEAM ONWARD. The mission of UCFA is to increase the number of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) growers of culturally meaningful  heirloom seeds.  UCFA recognizes the need for increased diversity in agriculture and farming and specially increased diversity in the $15 billion dollar U.S. seed industry. 

UCFA works to provide more opportunities and support for growers from historically oppressed and marginalized communities. To this end the Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance is working to bridge the gap between prospective growers and seed companies. 

Heirloom seed farming can be a lucrative business opportunity for farmers, gardeners, and growers as demand far outstrips supply.  Farmers and gardeners can make a profit from seed farming on just a small plot of land. Many folks take up seed growing as a side business, rather than as their sole source of income.  

Support UCFA by purchasing UJAMAA SEEDS at ujamaaseeds.com. In addition to plant types, our culturally meaningful seed collections are organized by regional and ethnic/cultural traditions. 

At UCFA we view seeds as more than a commodity, but also as vessels of culture. The rise of commercialized agriculture over the past century, has resulted in a 75% decrease in food crop diversity. With the decline in regional food crop diversity, not only are many heirloom varieties becoming extinct, but regional farming traditions, and regional cultural cuisines also risk erasure.  Within each seed is life that sustains us, and life that provides us with connections to the past, and to our ancestors and our future generations.

At UCFA we are passing on the ancient and traditional knowledge of seed saving through several programs and projects. UCFA Seed Hubs are localized independent collectives of BIPOC farmers and gardeners organized around growing, cleaning, and processing culturally meaningful heirloom seeds. 

UCFA supports ten Seed Hubs across the nation.Through the Ujamaa Academy and the Ira Wallace Seed Farming School, UCFA is providing BIPOC growers instruction in seed farming and seed saving via online classes as well as on-site face-to-face learning. 

UCFA is passing on the tradition of seed farming and seed saving to youth through our Collardz 4 Kidz Project, and our Wangari Maathai Food Forest Project. In addition, UCFA is identifying and interviewing seasoned BIPOC growers of culturally meaningful seeds nationwide through the Heirloom Garden Oral History Project.

Through partnerships such as the Seed Farm at Princeton and the Heirloom Collard Project, as well as partnerships with other universities and organizations, UCFA grows rare, culturally-meaningful seed crops and pursues research on the art and science of heirloom plants. 

In addition, on four acres in Upper Marlboro, Maryland UCFA is converting Tayman’s Field, a formerly terraced organic vegetable farm into a seed farming demonstration site.

Gardening with heirloom seeds preserves heritage varieties, and contributes to biodiversity, as well as a more resilient and sustainable food system. Through UJAMAA SEEDS, we cultivate and distribute culturally meaningful heirloom seeds mainly online, but also at conferences, and at market day events. 

In addition to being organized by plant types, the UJAMMA SEEDS collections are organized online by geographic and ethnic/cultural traditions. Gardeners can search varieties via our 

• African Garden Collection,
• Asian Garden Collection, 
• Caribbean Garden Collection, 
• European Garden Collection, 
• First Nation Garden Collection, 
• Latin American Garden Collection, and 
• Southern Soul Garden Collection.