Summary Of Will Allen's The Good Food Revolution

Will Allen’s The Good Food Revolution is more than just the history of how Will Allen became one of the most popular, successful, and innovative urban farmers the farming community has experienced. His book, published in 2012, details his hardships, setbacks, successes, and the inequalities he faced as an African American farmer in the impoverished city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and in the farming community as a whole. There are numerous themes that are possibilities to point out, as Allen discusses a variety of topics, including the important influences in his life, and farming techniques he has successfully implemented in his almost twenty-five years as a farmer. The three themes I am choosing to highlight are the complex relationship between …show more content…
This is significant because Allen does not undertake this endeavor with a solitary goal of financial gain. There are many illustrated instances when Allen could not pay his workers or his bills for the farm. He was unsure when his next paycheck was going to come or what profit he would make, if any. However, once Allen began to turn a profit and experience success, he was not content just to stop there. He did not settle with the systems and practices he implemented, but rather looked for ways from outside sources to better what was already performing well and garnering profits. He constantly asked himself what more could he do and what other space in his greenhouse could he utilize. The major theme of continuing to persevere and find success emotionally and ecologically rather than economically is best illustrated when Allen is describing the different things he begins to cultivate “All the good things that have come in my life were only because of grit, and my willingness to forge ahead even in the face of uncertainty and mistakes” (Allen 207). Allen creates his own tilapia tank that also fertilizes his crops, he harvests worms to create fertile soil, and he composts hundreds of pounds of garbage. His first prototypes are ongoing. He is always looking for new and better ways to improve his methods of cultivating with the materials he uses to do so. In our class, we’ve discussed which issue in food justice is most important. Allen believes all issues are important. He discusses his continued impact on trying to improve the political and economic side of farming as well as other aspects of urban agriculture that other farms have had trouble addressing in other