Jordan: These urban farmers are participants in the Al Barakeh Wheat Project
In Jordan, an Ancient Bread Tradition Rises Again
By Sam Lin-Sommer
Atlas Obscura
October 7, 2022
Excerpt:
In the bustling capital of Amman, Jordan, teachers, dentists, and entrepreneurs kneel in unused lots behind furniture stores and shopping malls, sowing seeds like their ancestors did. Under the tutelage of farmers from the city’s outskirts, they follow the grain from planting to harvest, eventually walking through lush fields of wheat with sickles in hand. They gather enough wheat to feed their families for an entire year, with enough left over to share with friends, relatives, and neighbors.
These urban farmers are participants in the Al Barakeh Wheat Project, an organization that aims to revive an ancient wheat and baking culture that has been decimated by globalization. From farms in the sweltering Jordan Valley to urban harvests to Amman’s only stone mill, the organization (whose name translates to the “Wheat Blessings Project”) endeavors to reconnect Jordanians to their land—and, in the process, to one another.
