Cameron Terry, 33 / Farmer, Garden Variety Harvests
Cameron Terry moved to Roanoke in 2017, quickly ingraining himself into the local food and agriculture community. He is a grower partner with the Real Food Campaign, a research project exploring the nutrient density of organic and local produce, and is farm manager at Morningside Urban Farm, an educational plot for Carilion Clinic, where he also teaches quarterly classes. Terry has led multiple public farm tours, serves on the Board of Directors at LEAP and is on the board of the SWVA Agrarian Commons. He regularly leads field trips with schools and after-school programs, and donates unsold produce to area food banks. He was a featured speaker in Book City Roanoke’s “The Cooking Gene” book club and a workshop lecturer at Mountain Run Jam: In Celebration of Agriculture and the Arts in 2021. “My passion for growing nutritious food feeds local people, of course,” Terry says. “But more importantly, GVH’s urban farm plots are a demonstration of the fact that small spaces can be productive. I hope that people see what this little urban farm network has accomplished … and are inspired to take charge of their own food sovereignty. Whether it’s berries, veggies or a small flock of layer hens, everyone should be getting a regular dose of the satisfaction that comes from working with nature to provide for you and yours!”
- Earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre, Film and Television Production, University of Colorado at Denver, 2009
- Featured farmer at Local Roots Urban Farm Dinner, 2021
From the Nomination: “… While working his day job in film projection booths, behind various cameras, and in sales of fine ethnic art, Cameron Terry started digging into the world of raising his own food. … The business he started, Garden Variety Harvests, is a diversified veggie farm dispersed over a handful of city backyards. Over the past five years, Terry has become a self-supporting urban farmer who makes his living selling produce grown on 1/3 of an acre. He owns none of the land he farms. Roanoker magazine readers may have purchased his vegetables at the Grandin Village Farmers Market, or eaten his signature garden salad mix at area restaurants like Bloom, Local Roots or River and Rail. … He has become a spokesperson for the benefits of eating local food, the challenges of farming in the 21st century, and the need for a transfer of land to new farmers. … At 33 years old, Terry is drastically younger than the average farmer. Farming is strenuous, exhausting work and new agriculture businesses have a very high failure rate. Yet, Garden Variety Harvests was started using just a few thousand dollars in savings and the generosity of Terry’s immediate community. Over the past five years, Terry created a thriving farm business that has become a model for those looking for a way to succeed at agriculture without access to land. And he’s not done growing, teaching or innovating. Over the next few years, Terry will consolidate the GVH backyard farm network onto a single 3.5 acre parcel in Roanoke City. GVH’s new home will serve as a community-led food production site, teaching farming and gardening to Roanokers looking for more sustenance from their yard. This project is just getting started, but should create an even wider audience for Terry’s insights — and his produce.”
What do you love about Roanoke?
Terry: “Roanoke is the perfectly sized city in my opinion: large enough that we have at least one of anything a person might need, but small enough that a single person or small business feels capable of making a true impact. And as a grower of vegetables, I appreciate that the climate is such that food can be produced year round with a reasonable level of effort.”
How does your passion impact our community?
Terry: “My passion for growing nutritious food feeds local people, of course. But more importantly, GVH’s urban farm plots are a demonstration of the fact that small spaces can be productive. I hope that people see what this little urban farm network has accomplished with the support of the Roanoke community and are inspired to take charge of their own food sovereignty. Whether it’s berries, veggies or a small flock of layer hens, everyone should be getting a regular dose of the satisfaction that comes from working with nature to provide for you and yours!”
