Graham Sparrow – Profile of an Organic Farmer

Graham shares the farm with best friend Brewin.

For Graham Sparrow, owner and operator of Edmonton’s Sparrow Organics, farming is as much about environmental stewardship as it is about growing food. According to Graham, his role as an organic farmer is to cultivate a balance between growing plants and nurturing the soil. “That’s really the difference between organic and conventional farming. Conventional methods grow plants at the expense of the soil, while the focus with organic is actually to take care of the soil so that it can grow plants.”

Graham wasn’t always so ecologically-minded. Growing up in downtown Calgary, Graham spent his youth believing he’d grow up to become a banker or financial manager. While in university he decided to try a different path and moved to Ireland for a change of pace. “I was in my twenties when I spent nine months [in Ireland] working on organic farms. It was with WWOOF, which stands for 'Willing Workers on Organic Farms', and it changed everything for me. I realized I could live a life with more meaning and I came back to Canada ready to do things differently.” Graham worked at several BC organic farms, and an organic orchard in Southern California before a final stint as Produce Manager in an organic food store. After working at several organic farms and orchards in BC and California, Sparrow moved back to Alberta in 2000 to start his own company, Sparrow Organics. Now the best part of his life is “Being outside! I thrive on it and I feel it in my soul and in my heart that I am where I should be.”

Starting in 2005, Sparrow Organics became an official produce supplier for Planet Organic Markets in Edmonton. “We didn’t have surplus produce because I was focused on getting the CSA (community supported agriculture) going. But now I am happy to say that I supply carrots, several different varieties of potato, three varieties of lettuces, four of cabbage, and six of onions – including an amazing big, mild, sweet onion. And in the fall we supply beautiful shallots for Planet Organic customers. I love my job.”