By Xennia Hamilton for Los Angeles Sentinel
Originally published June 3, 2026
In South LA, there are many foods and cuisines to choose from — Jamaican, Thai, Italian, Ethiopian, and food from all over the world. Yet, one organization is looking to expand South Los Angeles’ healthy food supply and habits all while using residents and businesses to feed the masses.
Every Sunday at the corner of Coliseum Street and Degnan Boulevard, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Crop Swap LA sells bountiful harvests of fresh produce to keep the community healthy.
“Crop Swap LA is an eight-year-old nonprofit that focuses on growing food on unused spaces, such as people’s yards, school properties, church properties, apartment buildings, and even nonprofits, such as the YMCA, senior centers, and domestic abuse shelters,” explains Jamiah Hargins, founding executive director and chairman of the board of Crop Swap LA.
“We have a staff of 25 and manage 20 properties. We also have an endowment that we created that helps us get through hard times, as roughly 50% of our money is grants. We’re growing food in seven schools, including two high schools, and including charter, private, and LAUSD schools, and we do workshops on a monthly basis.”
Crop Swap LA uses the resources of the community and neighborhood around Los Angeles and abound to help their mission, while also helping those who help out.
“Right now, we have over 500 people’s trees that we go by and harvest the extra stuff from,” he said.
“They get a tax write off because that qualifies as a donation to our nonprofit, and for the residential homes, we track the amount of water that goes into our micro farms and that also constitutes a write off.”
Rainwater is also an essential element used by Hargins and his team at Crop Swap LA for many purposes, not just for their produce and services.
“We also install rainwater capture tanks that are subterranean, so that they can store a lot of water, such as in my house, 5,000 gallons of water is rainwater. When it does fall, it captures that and keeps it fresh and triple filters it, including a bio filter that makes it potable and drinkable,” he explained.
“The only water that we have in the city that does not have heavy metals, fluoride, and chlorine in it, and instead can be used in the case of an emergency, where, say, we have rolling blackouts, we can tap into that water without needing electricity to get it, and survive for many months.”
Hargins explained how he deals essentially with homeowners or businesses to obtain the healthy produce that is available with Crop Swap LA. The organization will also assist those who would like to grow fruits and vegetables for the organization.
“We built this institution very creatively and intelligently to be flexible, so that we can continue growing in a natural way. And homeowners have a financial incentive to invite us on their property to manage their gardens, their micro farms,” he said.
“Of course, if people just want a small garden, we can install that too, and we’ll walk away from it, but we encourage them to go 10 raised beds or more, so that we can prioritize it and grow food for them, but also for the community.”
Crop Swap LA will also come to a client’s home or business to pick up the produce, saving a participant time and convenience.
“We have a membership delivery system. The way the food works is every Sunday from all our locations. We harvest what’s ready and split it up among 60 member families who receive it as a delivery on their doorstep,” he said.
“We deliver with our EV truck, so it’s very low cost and environmentally conscious. If you live within 2 miles of our headquarters at the Degnan Micro Farm, you’re eligible for the delivery, and we prioritize, because there’s a wait list for that.”
Many fruits and vegetables are sold by Crop Swap LA, who gives preference to those receiving EBT assistance, veterans, single parents, parents of multiple children, and caregivers.
“So, things that we pick from people’s trees include all citrus, varieties of oranges, grapefruits, kumquats. We also pick grapes from people’s yards, cactus fruit, and loquats,” he described.
“We pick apples, plums, bananas, pears, and various other things that are not available in the stores because they’re delicate, that includes carrots, beets, collard greens, lettuces, I’ve got celery, and fava beans, pretty much anything that is in season.”
The organization accepts donations to help with its mission as well.
“You can transfer land to us, business ownership percentage royalties, an inheritance or gold, or other royalties and various other non-cash assets,” he said.
“I just want to put that out there for people who don’t want to give the cash up. If there’s some asset you’re sitting on, you don’t know what to do with, transfer it to us. We’ll sell it and use the money,” advised Hargins.
For more information, visit cropswapla.org.
