The 280,000-square-foot structure will produce over 2 million pounds of leafy salad greens a year to be shipped daily to local retailers.
What’s new in food: Asheville plans a nutritional food hub
Asheville Parks and Recreation surveys residents for a new wellness-focused food hub, April is Food Waste Reduction Month, Ivory Road Café & Kitchen hosts Macarons & Mimosas, and more local food news.
Need for seed: Pandemic supply problems see second season
Last spring’s supply problems have persisted this growing season — and have extended to commercial farming operations — as seed companies grapple with coronavirus-induced labor issues and consistently high demand.
TDA projects roaring year for Buncombe visitation
At its March 25 regular meeting, the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority board unanimously approved a projection that occupancy tax revenue would exceed $27 million for fiscal year 2021-22 — 15% more than projected for the current fiscal year, which ends in June, and 9% more than the year before the pandemic.
Homeless resource groups think big with COVID relief funds
“[The funding is] intended to be a pandemic response; it’s not actually intended to end homelessness. It just is, happily, an opportunity for us to end homelessness, because that is also a response to the coronavirus,” says Emily Ball, homeless services lead for the city of Asheville.
Tailgate markets use 2020 hindsight to roll out fresh plans for 2021
After a mad scramble to reinvent themselves last spring, WNC’s neighborhood tailgate markets look ahead to the 2021 growing seaso
WNC Food Justice Planning Initiative collaborates for system change
The initiative has identified six strategies: healthy food distribution, community gardens, agriculture networks, food waste, cooking and nutrition education, and the development of a regional food council.
Spring brings new opportunities for local restaurants and food companies
We Give a Share plans to increase its capacity, Cúrate Spanish Wine Club hosts a series of virtual wine tastings and cooking demos and chef Susi Gott Séguret relaunches her popular Madison County foraging and dining expeditions, plus more local food news.
Child care and summer camps strike delicate balance
Though it looked a bit different from the YMCA of Western North Carolina’s typical summer camp offerings, the Y’s Amy Deter says Camp 2020 was still a success. “The kids got outside and away from screens, it gave parents a break, and we had no positive cases,” she reports. Other area camps also weigh in about the steps they have taken to adapt and reimagine their programming during the pandemic.
$51M in federal COVID relief on way to Buncombe
The funds, equal to roughly a quarter of budgeted property tax revenue for the current fiscal year and more than its budgeted spending on general government administration, represent by far the largest pot of federal support yet provided to the county during the pandemic.
What’s new in food: Healthy eats, tasty treats, riverside dining
In this week’s local food news, chefs Eric Morris and Daniel Rider bring farm-fresh breakfast to the ASAP Farmers Market, Asheville Beauty Academy hosts Queen Mum High Tea, Summit Coffee opens a new location in the Grove Arcade and more.
Buncombe to discuss nondiscrimination ordinance March 16
Buncombe County would become the first local government in Western North Carolina to pass a nondiscrimination ordinance. Orange County and several municipalities have approved similar language after a statewide ban on such ordinances expired Dec. 1.
Green in brief: WNC gets $100K toward charging stations, RiverLink seeks storm drain adoptions
The charging station program, funded by the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality from part of the state’s allocation in the Volkswagen emissions-cheating scandal, partially defrays the cost of installing Level 2 infrastructure, which can recharge electric vehicles up to seven times as quickly as a standard 120-volt outlet.
Teaching kids to cook feeds culinary curiosity and builds confidence
Local chefs and cooking instructors offer tips for helping kids learn kitchen fundamentals.
Restaurateurs battered by the pandemic keep their dreams alive
Closing a restaurant is complicated, costly and emotional say three restaurateurs who made that difficult decision in 2020 and are still navigating the after effects and determining what’s next.
Proposed state COVID-19 tax relief worries Buncombe officials
“We would end up basically having to raise taxes on everyone else to fund these rebates to businesses that we understand have had a tough year, but many of which have had a great decade ahead of this year,” said Board of Commissioners Chair Brownie Newman.
Restaurants reopen after winter sabbaticals
With spring just around the corner, restaurants are shaking off the dust from their winter breaks.
Edwards nixes TDA reform in local legislative update
“This is not the time to talk about redistribution in any manner,” Republican Sen. Edwards told the Council of Independent Business owners regarding changes to the allocation of Buncombe County’s occupancy tax revenue. “The tourism industry has just been destroyed.”
WNC has more job openings than unemployed workers. Why?
As of December 2020, there were 21,391 unique job postings in Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania counties. But many of the available jobs require higher levels of education or training than those currently unemployed possess.
Downtown survey flags longstanding issues, new pandemic concerns
Outside of COVID-19, the top three business issues reported in the latest Asheville Downtown Association survey remain virtually identical to those of previous years: downtown cleanliness, safety and parking for both visitors and employees.
Commercial kitchens help food entrepreneurs realize their visions
Blue Ridge Food Ventures is the largest facility in the region offering rented kitchen, production and storage space. But several others have launched in recent years to help meet the needs and realize the dreams of Western North Carolina’s food and beverage visionaries.