New Roots in America

refugees sell produce grown by fellow refugees at a farmers' market in San Diego

Photo: Peter Biro/IRC

With support from the International Rescue Committee, refugees from around the globe who have fled war and persecution are providing nutritious food for their families and planting new roots in their adopted communities in the United States.

The Latest

How We Help

The IRC is helping refugees set down new roots in the U.S. by:

Supporting home and community gardens
Providing greater access to fresh and healthy foods
Reconnecting them with familiar agricultural traditions
Giving them a chance to share the tastes of home with their new neighbors
Creating opportunities to earn income by selling their produce
Supporting small farms and other refugee-owned businesses
Developing job opportunities in agriculture and other industries

Building Healthy Communities

FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA VISITS "PHENOMENAL" IRC-SUPPORTED URBAN FARM: As part of the IRC's New Roots program in several US cities, refugees are planting fresh produce -- which is hard to find in many neighborhoods -- to feed their families and, in some cases, sell in local farmers' markets. They found a fan in First Lady Michelle Obama, who called the IRC-supported urban farm she visited in San Diego in 2010 a "phenomenal" model for building healthy communities.