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# Coastal Roots Farm turns regenerative agriculture into a community operating model

Publication Date: 2026-10-20T16:00:00-04:00
Last Updated: 2026-10-17T00:47:45-04:00

Author: Alexei Rezvanov (https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/author/arezvanov/)

Categories: [Regenerative Agriculture](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/sustainability/regenerative-agriculture/), [AgTech & Research](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/agtech-and-research/), [Crop Protection](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/markets/crop-protection/), [Production & Supply](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/markets/production/), [Sustainability](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/sustainability/)

![Coastal Roots Farm turns regenerative agriculture into a community operating model](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal_roots_farm_01.jpeg)

The Encinitas nonprofit combines small-scale organic production, composting, food access, education and community programs, using its 17-acre farm as both a working operation and a living classroom.

At first glance, [Coastal Roots Farm](https://coastalrootsfarm.org) in Encinitas, California, looks like a relatively small organic farm. Its 17 acres include vegetable production fields, an education farm and gardens, a "food forest", chickens and a composting operation. But agriculture is only one part of the organization’s operating model. Coastal Roots Farm describes itself as a community farm and education center guided by Jewish values and open to people of all backgrounds, with its work spanning regenerative agriculture, food access, environmental education and Jewish life.

That combination makes the farm less a conventional production operation than a community-focused agricultural platform. The organization grows more than 80,000 pounds of organic produce annually and donates more than 70% of its harvest to San Diego communities facing food insecurity, while also operating a pay-what-you-can farm stand, educational programs, camps, tours, volunteer activities and community events.

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal_roots_farm_02-1024x683.jpeg)Image Credits: Coastal Roots Farm

The model is now entering a new phase under CEO Kesha Dorsey, who was appointed to lead the organization in July 2026 after previously serving as its chief strategy officer and interim CEO.

## Soil comes first

For Coastal Roots Farm, regenerative agriculture starts below the surface. The farm’s approach is built around soil fertility and nutrition, which its agricultural team describes as the foundation for crop health and the wider ecosystem. Crop rotation, cover crops, diverse planting, low- to no-tillage practices and compost application all support that objective. But among those practices, the farm identifies rotating chickens through production areas as one of the most significant sources of additional nutrition.

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal_roots_farm_03-1024x683.jpeg)Image Credits: Coastal Roots Farm

The chickens are brought onto areas where production pauses. Their manure adds nutrients, including nitrogen, while the temporary break from crop production gives the soil an opportunity to recover. Cover crops are then used to continue building fertility before the area returns to production.

Other practices maintain soil health during the growing cycle. Crop rotation reduces the likelihood that the same plant families will repeatedly encounter diseases that remain in the soil, while limited tillage helps minimize soil disturbance. Compost is added when beds are prepared and can also be applied as a top dressing.

The farm does not view these techniques as interchangeable parts of a formula. Instead, they form an interconnected system in which soil health is intended to make crops more resilient and reduce the need for interventions later in the production cycle.

That approach is also reflected in the farm’s pest-management strategy. Coastal Roots relies first on healthy plants, crop rotation and physical barriers such as floating row covers and bird netting. Farm workers may manually remove pests when necessary.

The farm also releases beneficial insects, including lacewings and parasitic wasps, and maintains herbs, flowers and other habitat intended to keep those organisms on the property. The approach is particularly well-suited to the farm’s educational mission: students visiting the site can see ecological relationships in practice rather than only learning about them in a classroom.

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/1497058.png)
### Parasitoid wasps

These wasps lay their eggs inside other insects, and the larvae eventually kill the host. They are generally harmless to people and can help control pest insects naturally.

When pest pressure becomes severe, Coastal Roots can use certified organic products such as BT. But the agricultural team describes such treatments as a last resort because even organically approved sprays can affect organisms beyond their intended targets.

## A compost pile becomes part of the farm's nutrient cycle

The farm’s compost operation illustrates the same philosophy in a more concentrated form. Coastal Roots sources materials from its surrounding community rather than purchasing conventional fertilizer inputs. Wood chips and manure come from a local horse stable, while local arborists provide wood chips from tree-trimming operations. Plant material from the farm and food scraps brought to the farm also become part of the nutrient stream. According to the farm, these materials are generally obtained at no cost, creating a reciprocal arrangement in which local businesses can avoid disposal costs while the farm gains raw material for compost.

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal-roots-farm-compost-1024x768.jpeg)Image Credits: Coastal Roots Farm

The compost pile is constructed using roughly three parts carbon-rich material to one part nitrogen-rich material. The ingredients are layered, watered and placed over perforated PVC pipes that periodically introduce oxygen.

The objective is to maintain an aerobic decomposition process. Microorganisms consume the organic material, releasing heat as they metabolize it. The farm says the pile could reach more than 130 °F for as long as three days, a temperature that helps to kill pathogens.

The active phase lasts about six weeks. The material is then moved off the aeration pipes and left to cure for another six weeks. During this period, the pile cools and continues decomposing, while beneficial microorganisms can repopulate the finished material.

After curing, the compost is sifted. Larger pieces that have not fully decomposed are returned to the compost operation, while the finer material is applied to production fields. The farm generally top-dresses beds with finished compost and may lightly rake it into the soil.

Another use for compost is compost tea. Finished compost is mixed with water to create a biologically active liquid that can be applied to plant leaves and soil.

The result is a nutrient cycle that connects the farm with its surrounding community: tree trimmings, manure, crop residues and food scraps become inputs for producing food, while the farm's own organic residues return to the same cycle.

The farm also diverts significant quantities of material from disposal. Its 2025 third-quarter impact report, for example, recorded 21,980 pounds of waste diverted from landfills during the quarter and 76% of 22,291 pounds of organic food grown during that period donated through its food-access programs.

## Regenerative agriculture meets the limits of Southern California

The model also reflects the realities of farming in Southern California. Coastal Roots Farm relies on city water, which the team describes as expensive, making conservation an operational necessity. Drip irrigation delivers water directly to crops, while mulch helps retain moisture and suppress weeds. In the "food forest", berms and swales are designed to capture water and allow it to infiltrate rather than run off immediately.

Weather variability creates a separate challenge. The farm's agricultural team said that a warm, dry winter can stress cool-season crops such as brassicas and lettuce. When plants are growing outside the conditions they are adapted to, they can become more vulnerable to pests and disease, increasing the need for organic pest-control products.

Heavy rain creates another problem. When precipitation does arrive, it can come in intense events, requiring the farm to prepare for flooding as well as drought and heat.

The experience illustrates one of the practical arguments behind the farm's emphasis on soil: the goal is not simply to eliminate purchased inputs, but to build a production system capable of handling changing environmental conditions.

## The scale question

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal-roots-farm-chicken-1024x683.jpeg)Image Credits: Coastal Roots Farm

Whether Coastal Roots Farm's practices can be transferred directly to large-scale agriculture is less straightforward.

The farm describes itself as a small-scale production operation, and its team sees clear opportunities for practices such as crop rotation and cover cropping to be used on much larger farms. But diversification becomes more difficult as farms scale because it can reduce operational efficiency.

Integrating animals into crop production introduces another layer of complexity. Mobile chicken systems could theoretically be used on larger farms, but the Coastal Roots team said it was not familiar with examples demonstrating how such a system could work across hundreds of acres.

That qualification is important. Coastal Roots does not present itself as a blueprint that can simply be copied by large commodity farms. Instead, its team sees the operation as a collection of practices that other farms can adapt individually.

Some of that knowledge is already spreading through people. Former Coastal Roots farm employees have moved into other agricultural operations, while some have gone on to establish their own farms. The organization also works with academic institutions, including UC San Diego, where soil-related research is being conducted at the farm.

The current farm therefore functions partly as a demonstration site: a place where agricultural practices can be implemented, observed and tested in a real production environment.

## Food access is part of the production model

The farm's output is also deliberately disconnected from a conventional commercial model. More than 70% of the harvest is donated through partnerships with organizations involved in food relief. Produce is packed and delivered to partner organizations serving communities experiencing food insecurity.

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal_roots_farm_04-1024x683.jpeg)Image Credits: Coastal Roots Farm

The on-site farm stand operates differently. It functions like a farmers market but allows customers to receive up to a $30 discount when they need it. Coastal Roots says the pay-what-you-can model allows customers who can afford to pay the suggested price to help support access for others. Its website says about one-third of Farm Stand customers use the pay-what-you-can system.

The result is a production model in which the value of the harvest is measured not only by the amount of produce sold, but also by how much food reaches people who might otherwise have limited access to fresh organic produce.

The farm's current website says it prioritizes low-income seniors and families, Holocaust survivors, active-duty military and veteran families, Latinx families, Indigenous and Native families and other community members experiencing barriers to fresh food.

## A farm that is also a classroom

Education is another major component of the operation. Coastal Roots Farm works with school districts and other educational organizations to bring students onto the farm. Its current programs cover subjects ranging from soil health, compost and pollination to food systems, climate resilience, regenerative agriculture and food justice. Since 2014, the organization says it has reached more than 60,000 young people through education programs.

The farm runs a partnership with the Escondido Union School District, through which fourth-grade students learn about plant, animal and insect adaptations and the relationships between pests and their predators.

![](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/coastal_roots_farm_05-1024x768.jpeg)Image Credits: Coastal Roots Farm

That can make an otherwise abstract agricultural concept tangible. A lesson about biological pest control can take place next to the crops where lacewings and parasitic wasps are actually being used. Compost can be examined next to the beds where it will eventually be applied.

The farm also runs camps, Nature Play, internships, volunteer programs and public tours. Its current public Farm Tours explicitly combine regenerative agriculture, food distribution, environmental education and Jewish values, turning the physical farm into a venue for explaining the organization's broader operating model.

## Building a nonprofit around multiple revenue streams

Running all of these activities requires an operating model that goes well beyond crop sales. Roughly one-third of Coastal Roots Farm's annual budget comes from earned revenue, including the farm stand and programs such as summer camps and Nature Play. The remaining two-thirds is raised through individual donations, grants and corporate funding. The organization maintains a development operation to support that fundraising.

That model has also forced the organization to confront the economics of growth. The farm's budget had reached about $4 million, but management concluded that level was not sustainable. The organization subsequently reduced its annual budget by about $600,000, with the stated objective of preserving its core activities while becoming more disciplined in allocating resources.

That financial adjustment comes as Coastal Roots enters a leadership transition. Dorsey was named CEO in July after serving as interim CEO during the departure of Javier Guerrero, who led the organization from 2018 until April 2026. According to the farm's board, during Guerrero's tenure, the farm expanded annual food production from about 40,000 pounds to 80,000 pounds and education programs to more than 12,000 young people annually.

Dorsey's appointment therefore comes at a point when Coastal Roots is balancing two objectives: maintaining the breadth of a community institution while making the organization financially sustainable.

## More than a farm

The defining feature of Coastal Roots Farm may ultimately be that farming is not treated as a standalone activity. The crops provide food. The chickens contribute to soil fertility. Compost converts local waste streams into a farm input. The fields become classrooms. The harvest becomes a food-access program. The farm stand becomes both a source of earned revenue and a mechanism for subsidizing access. Events and camps provide additional revenue while bringing people onto the property.

The organization itself describes its mission as cultivating healthy, connected communities through sustainable agriculture, food access and Jewish life.

For large-scale agriculture, not every element of the model is immediately transferable. A 17-acre community farm with a diversified mission operates under different conditions from a several-hundred-acre commodity operation. Coastal Roots' own team acknowledges that diversification can reduce efficiency and that more large-scale examples are needed to demonstrate how regenerative practices can work at a commercial scale.

But the farm offers a different proposition: rather than attempting to prove that one complete system can replace another, it demonstrates how individual agricultural practices can be combined with education, community engagement, food access and diversified revenue.

That makes Coastal Roots Farm an agricultural operation, but also something broader — a working demonstration of how farming can be used as infrastructure for a community.

Tags: [California](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/california/), [Coastal Roots Farm](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/coastal-roots-farm/), [compost](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/compost/), [crop rotation](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/crop-rotation/), [organic agriculture](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/organic-agriculture/), [organic farming](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/organic-farming/), [organic fertilizer](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/organic-fertilizer/), [organic produce](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/organic-produce/), [regenerative agriculture](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/regenerative-agriculture/), [regenerative farming](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/regenerative-farming/), [sustainability](https://www.fertilizerdaily.com/tag/sustainability/)

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