Pioneering Sustainable Agriculture in The Bahamas

OEF and CTI are taking another major step towards a more sustainable and resilient future with the development of a regenerative food forest at the CTI Campus in Rock Sound. This innovative project, which aims to create a self-sustaining, organic farming system, stands as a direct response to the environmental and economic challenges posed by modern industrial farming practices. At the core of the food forest is a diverse range of fruit trees, carefully selected to provide not only food but also the shade and protection needed to support a variety of shorter plants beneath the canopy. These plants, including grasses and legumes, play a vital role in enriching the soil, creating a healthy, biodiverse ecosystem. Everything in the food forest is designed with one goal in mind: to nurture the land, increase biodiversity, and promote the health of the soil. Unlike conventional farming, which often depletes the soil of its nutrients and relies on harmful chemical inputs, this approach prioritizes the well-being of the land.

Check out this Q&A with Farmer Tim Hauber, Agriculture Consultant at OEF.

1. What is theRegenerative Food Forest (RFF) at the CTI Farm? 

A Regenerative Food Forest is a form of ecological and regenerative agriculture that is modelled on nature, specifically a forest.  Different plants are grown together to form a resilient and healthy ecosystem similar to a forest. Perennial plants, such as shrubs and trees, play a central role.   Food forests have the potential to provide all the ingredients for a healthy diet and can even produce other products (wood, fibre, medicinal herbs) and at the same time, food forests provide ecosystem services that are urgently needed today: they build fertile soil, increase biodiversity, cool the local climate, permanently store carbon and much more. Our Regenerative Food Forest will be one acre in size and will be situated next to our 1.1-acre retractable roof cooling house (The Oasis). 

2. What will be the main layout / features of this new Agri-development?

The backbone of the food forest is the trees, in our case, mostly fruit trees.  The trees will provide shade and protection for the shorter plants in the system. Below the canopy of the trees, we will be growing a wide variety of other plants that will provide food, but will also enrich the soil.   Everything that we do in the food forest is done with the goal of enriching the soil and the biodiversity of the plot, which is the opposite of what modern industrial farming practices do.   We will be planting grasses and legumes that will be regularly cut and used as mulch for the trees and other plants in the forest, helping to create rich, living soil.    This plot will be managed using organic farming techniques, free of any chemical pesticides or fertilizers.    Once the plot is fully established, (approximately 5 years), it should be virtually self-sustaining and will not need any external inputs.

3. What does OEF/CTI hope to accomplish through the RFF? Main goals?

We believe that this model of growing food might be the most sustainable and resilient model for The Bahamas.   Modern farming techniques require many inputs that must be purchased from outside the country. However, this model will be virtually self-sustaining and will require very little, if any, inputs once it is established.  If we, as a nation, are seeking to move towards self-sufficiency in our food production, then we believe this model must be tested and proven.   We also believe that as the climate continues to change on our planet, we must seek food production techniques that are more resilient than current farming practices, and a food forest is definitely one of these.    Our goal is to demonstrate this technique as a viable production model in The Bahamas and then share the knowledge and insights gained with the broader farming and scientific community. 

4. How does a feature like this support local agriculture, Agri-education and Agri-tourism?

Farmers, like any businessperson, are cautious about changing their current practices simply based on reports or articles that explain a new and possibly better way, because their livelihood is at stake. Based on all the research we have done, we are convinced that this technique of growing food is a better method than our current practices. We are taking the first step to establish a functional regenerative food forest. We are optimistic that we will soon see positive results that will convince the greater farming community that switching to this model will benefit them in both the short term and long term.   A switch to this model of agricultural production will be exciting for Agri-tourism because the diversity of fruits and vegetables that we can produce will be significantly greater. Our plot will feature more than 15 different fruit species, offering healthier and more delicious food options for all.