With local-food sales predicted to reach $7 billion this year, it makes sense for cities, counties, states and regions to focus on the local food company. To that end, the Appalachian Regional Commission is hosting a forum on the issue today and tomorrow, April 4, at the Renaissance Asheville Hotel. As one participant noted via Twitter, “Sustainable farming only occurs when social responsibility, environmental stewardship and economic viability work together.”
Tag: agriculture
Showing 43-51 of 51 results
Amy’s Kitchen S.C.-manufacturing facility looks to WNC farmers to supply organic produce
It was just a matter of time before WNC farmers and the folks at Amy’s East Coast production facility in Greenville, S.C., would start discussing supply and demand. The facility will need a lot of produce to supply when it goes online next summer.
WNC a bittersweet challenge for maple syrup production
Every year, there’s something interesting at the Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere Conference, held Nov. 15-17 this year in Asheville. This time around, a local entrepreneur’s passion for harvesting maple syrup caught my attention.
Healthcare, goats and a sense of awe: Mission Manna wraps up its fall session in Haiti
Twice a year, a team from Asheville-based Mission Manna travels to Haiti to provide healthcare to children living in and around the town of Montrouis.
Cherokee, other tribal farmers seek compensation based on class-action suit against USDA
Cherokee and other Native American farmers have until Dec. 27 to claim damages as a result of a class-action suit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The settlement allows up to $760 million in monetary relief.
House of many hats
The folks at Giardini Trattoria devise a different kind of CSA for the tech age.
Buncombe commissioners consider local and organic food initiatives to help the economy
Local and organic farmers got a boost today at the Buncombe County commissioners’ annual retreat, as commissioners took in a presentation underlining how a “buy local” initiative could help the economy.
A show of faith
Ducklings quack and mutter, picking through the dirt for slugs and weed seeds. In a thicket of cerulean love-in-a-mist, bumblebees hum a slow bass line against the staccato cries of the chickadees flitting from branch to branch amid the apple trees. Then THWACK! An arrow hits a low bridge spanning a drainage ditch, momentarily silencing […]
Growing with the times
Now in its 15th year, the Organic Growers School takes place on Saturday, March 8, at Blue Ridge Community College in Flat Rock. Flat out: Jenifer Miller of Fisher Branch Farm in Marshall teaches the basics of seed-starting at last year’s Organic Growers School. Courtesy Ogs Begun in 1993, with 100 attending, the OGS has […]