Kristian Skaarup, rooftop farmer

Kristian Skaarup’s rooftop farm is also an excellent restaurant.

Atop this vast building in the north of the city, Kristian Skaarup, 39, strolls down pathways and around flowerbeds rattling off the plants he grows here: “We have cabbages and broccoli over here, right there are carrots, radishes and asparagus, over there we grow strawberries and raspberries...” Østergro, the first urban rooftop farm to be established in Denmark, opened in 2014 and is home to 350m 2 of organic crops along with flowers, beehives, a henhouse and a rabbit hutch. In the middle stands a glass greenhouse-cum-dining room with a long table that can seat 25 and where gourmet, local cuisine is served to a rapt clientele, thrilled to have discovered this oasis 12 metres above the ground, with panoramic views of the city and the cranes of the port.

Every Wednesday, volunteers come to help tend the gardens.

“What motivated us to create this place? Climate change. In 2010 and 2011, the city saw torrential rains that caused severe flooding. So the local government wanted to better prepare for these natural disasters, which are likely to become more frequent, and promised to make Copenhagen the first carbon-neutral capital by 2025. Funding was made available and we proposed this farm project and were able to get to work on it in short order.”

“Even here in the city, we can eat local, healthy and natural food”

At the time, Kristian, a trained urban planner and landscaper, was focusing his work on making life more pleasant in the city’s neighbourhoods by developing green spaces. The desire to create a farm on a rooftop came to him during a trip to the United States, where he discovered community gardens and direct-to-consumer farm sales. With the help of two friends, Sofie Brincker and Livia Urban Swart Haaland, he made the dream a reality and was greeted by deluge of positive feedback in his home country, where environmental issues are treated as a serious priority. “In addition to the restaurant, we prepare about twenty weekly baskets for sale, filled with our own produce. We’re not trying to supply all of Copenhagen, but to show that, even here in the city, we can eat local, healthy and natural food.” Other farms are expected to open in the months to come.

Practising his own version of community supported agriculture, Østergro sells his fruits and vegetables directly to consumers.

A sunset is a backdrop for guests at the restaurant’s unique dining table.