BFI supports hands-on agroecology education, research, and community engagement at UC Berkeley’s Oxford Tract farm. Our programs connect students, researchers, urban farmers, and community partners through experiential learning, food production, field-based research, and demonstrations of resilient and equitable farming practices in an urban agricultural setting. We grow food for the Basic Needs Center food pantry on campus and in partnership with People’s Programs to provide food for West Oakland families.

Read more about the Oxford Tract on our blog. If you are interested in volunteering at Oxford Tract, please send an email to foodinstitute@berkeley.edu. Summer volunteer hours are Thursday 10am-12pm and 3-6pm, and Saturday 10am-1pm. Follow us on Instagram for the latest updates.

BFI is part of a research team that is evaluating California’s investments in farm-to-school projects, which aim to connect schools to local food producers while improving student access to healthy, fresh food. The Farm to School Incubator Grant Program Evaluation is funded by the state and examines the economic, environmental, and social impacts of F2S investments.

Dr. Tim Bowles, BFI Faculty Director, serves as a Co-Principal Investigator on the project, and BFI’s Policy Program co-leads the development of policy analysis and recommendations. The evaluation will help inform future investments and strengthen farm-to-school programming in California and beyond.

Read interim evaluation reports and policy recommendations. Webinars on the interim findings can be found on BFI’s YouTube page.

BFI is part of a statewide UC collaboration advancing policy-informed research on equitable agroecological farming transitions across California. The COAR project connects researchers, policymakers, farmers, and extension specialists to better understand the barriers and opportunities for farmers to adopt agroecological farming practices such as cover cropping, compost application, and diversified farming systems.

Dr. Tim Bowles, BFI Faculty Director, serves as a Co-Principal Investigator on the project. BFI Education Director Jezra Thompson co-leads the education workstream, while BFI Policy Director Neha Sanghera leads the policy team, which translates research findings into actionable policy recommendations and outreach strategies that support farmers and decision-makers across California.

Explore the COAR website and read our COAR blog.

A core part of our work on the UC Berkeley campus is to prepare the next generation of food systems leaders. Through interdisciplinary educational programming, mentorship, and experiential learning opportunities, we help undergraduate and graduate students connect academic study with real-world food systems challenges. BFI supports internship placements for students pursuing the Food Systems Minor, administers the Graduate Certificate in Food Systems, and partners with the Food Institute Graduate Council to foster professional development, community-building, and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Please read our Student Overview for more on BFI’s Educational Programming and check out our list of student groups.

BFI’s Lunch & Learn webinar series connects UC researchers with policymakers, advocates, students, and practitioners through timely conversations on food and farm systems research, policy, and community action. Topics range from SNAP, school food policy, agroecology, groundwater sustainability, and more. Now in its second year, the series has engaged more than 2,000 participants across California and beyond.

Check out our Lunch & Learn YouTube Recordings. Future webinars will be posted on our Events Page.

BFI’s Policy Program connects UC Berkeley food and farm systems research to policymaking in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. We host policy briefings, webinars, and roundtable discussions, highlighting the research of our faculty & staff affiliates. We partner with community leaders to support community-engaged scholarship and policy development.

As examples of our policy engagement work, please read about our work on grocery store restrictive covenants and SB 1000 implementation.

BFI is a workforce development partner as part of TOPP, a USDA initiative to support farmers transitioning to certified organic agriculture. We offer career pathway opportunities for UC Berkeley students in the areas of values-based food supply chains and technical assistance for farmers in the organic industry.

Read more about the project. In January 2024, BFI Policy Director Sakeenah Shabazz moderated an Ecofarm panel discussion about the genesis of TOPP. As part of the project, BFI supported Will Rosenzweig and Helene York of the Haas School of Business in the development of the Values-Based Food Supply Chain course. Additional projects include the student-led video and interview series: Pathways: Profiles of Local Food System Changemakers