Agrarian Trust

Land Access Strategy: Our Table Co-op and Community by Design, LLC

Our Table Co-op is the farm business part of a three organization system, all working together to realize a shared vision. The group started when their non-profit fiscal arm, Community by Design, LLC, purchased the 58-acre farm in Sherwood, OR, in September of 2011.

Community by Design was founded by Machelle and Narendra Varma. The couple founded the non-profit exclusively to realize the vision that has become Our Table. Narendra brought the capital necessary to implement the vision and purchase the farm. The mission of the non-profit is to promote a local food culture and economy. The non-profit essentially serves as a land trust for the farm. Community by Design will keep the land in sustainable agriculture in perpetuity.

The third arm of the vision is an educational entity, The Manav Foundation.

As the project forges forward, the intention is to begin to include other regional producers in the co-op. These producers would buy in and have a different level of membership.

Read more about Our Table Co-op in our Land Access Stories or at their website.