A Black-owned urban farm cooperative opened the first grocery store in Birmingham's Fountain Heights neighborhood in nearly 70 years on Nov. 7, filling a fresh-food gap that has forced residents to leave the area for basic provisions for decades.

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative (FHFC) debuted We All Eat Market inside Heart of the Farm, a new combined market and community kitchen facility designed to serve more than 3,000 residents in a low-access corridor where rising grocery prices and recent SNAP disruptions have put food security under additional strain.

The Numbers

The project drew unanimous support from the Birmingham City Council, which approved a $150,000 agreement with FHFC in 2025. The cooperative has grown from a single garden plot to 16 urban farm sites, and its We All Eat CSA program was the first in Alabama to accept EBT and participate in the Double Bucks program — a SNAP-matching initiative that effectively doubles participants' purchasing power on fresh produce. Much of what the market stocks is grown at FHFC plots within the neighborhood, shortening the supply chain to a matter of blocks.

Food Access Context

Food desert economics have drawn increased attention from city governments and cooperative food models as traditional grocery chains continue to rationalize their real-estate footprints away from lower-income urban neighborhoods. FHFC's approach — vertically integrated from farm plot to retail shelf — represents a supply-chain structure that sidesteps wholesale distribution entirely for a portion of its inventory. That model is relevant to convenience and foodservice operators tracking farm-to-retail trends and urban fresh-food sourcing, particularly as fresh-food and produce programs at c-stores have expanded in response to similar access gaps in underserved communities.

"For almost 70 years, families in Fountain Heights have had to leave their own neighborhood just to buy groceries, and every dollar they spent left with them," said M. Dominique Villanueva, co-founder of Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative. "Our communities don't have to wait for someone else to decide what we eat or where we can buy it. We can grow it, sell it and own it, and this market is proof of that."

Birmingham Mayor Randall L. Woodfin framed the opening as a neighborhood-investment play: "Access to fresh, healthy food shouldn't depend on your ZIP code."

Community Kitchen Angle

Beyond the retail floor, Heart of the Farm includes a commercial kitchen offered at affordable rates to local food entrepreneurs — a back-of-house resource that parallels the shared-kitchen infrastructure being tested by some c-store foodservice operators looking to incubate local brands. FHFC is also hiring from within the neighborhood to staff the store, reinforcing the cooperative's local-ownership model. The cooperative's existing programs include a home delivery service and the Freedom Harvest Apprenticeship, which trains community members in urban agriculture.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the financial backing behind Fountain Heights Farms' new market?

Birmingham City Council approved a $150,000 agreement with FHFC in 2025. The cooperative scaled from a single garden plot to 16 urban farm sites, demonstrating clear operational growth before opening We All Eat Market in the Fountain Heights neighborhood.

How does FHFC's EBT and Double Bucks program work?

We All Eat was Alabama's first CSA to accept EBT and participate in Double Bucks, a SNAP-matching initiative that doubles participants' purchasing power on fresh produce. This directly addresses food security for 3,000+ residents in a neighborhood facing recent SNAP disruptions and rising grocery prices.

Why hasn't this neighborhood had a grocery store in 70 years?

Traditional grocery chains continue to rationalize real estate away from lower-income urban neighborhoods due to margin pressure and demographic targeting. Fountain Heights represents a genuine food desert where residents previously had to leave the area entirely to access fresh provisions.

How does FHFC's supply chain differ from traditional grocery distribution?

FHFC uses vertical integration—from farm plot to retail shelf within blocks of the neighborhood—eliminating wholesale distribution for a significant portion of inventory. This shortens supply chain dramatically and keeps margin within the cooperative rather than traditional middlemen.

Why should c-store operators pay attention to this model?

Farm-to-retail sourcing and expanded produce programs at convenience stores are filling the same access gaps that FHFC targets, particularly in underserved urban corridors. Understanding this model helps operators compete on fresh-food offerings and identify local sourcing opportunities in their markets.