While many stalls are reinventing themselves for tourism, at the Erbaria, one family has been carrying on the same trade for nearly a century. An encounter that tells the story of Venice better than many guidebooks.

Step inside the shop and you’re transported to another world. They gesture with their hands, they speak Italian—Carlo and Martina bustle behind the counter, serving the city’s most Italian Parisians—and vice versa. The conversation gets going right at the counter, as we try not to think too much about all the excellent products surrounding us so we can stay focused.

At first glance, La Centrale Agricole gives no indication that life is thriving everywhere inside. A concrete building, large glass doors, plastic curtains, service elevators, and a maze of corridors where footsteps echo. Yet this is where some twenty urban agriculture projects are being incubated, from coffee roasting and fish farming to growing microgreens and raising insects. That morning, we are meeting Virginie Boivin. In a message, the president of La Centrale and head grower at Champignons Big Bloc told us: it’s a hectic time. September is a busy month because the City of Montréal is organizing Ferme en ville, a series of events centered on urban agriculture.