Growing Local

Eating local may seem as simple as buying fresh greens at the farmers market, but there’s a lot of theory to back up why these small acts add up to a resilient food community. Studying how and why the local food system is evolving gives organizations like ASAP concrete methods to test the most effective ways to create healthy food systems.

ASAP’s Local Food Research Center collects and analyzes data to understand how the perceptions and attitudes of local farmers, food system buyers, and consumers are changing as the region’s food system grows and evolves.

The research center surveys a wide range of people engaged in the local food system to find out why they eat local, the barriers they face, and how their experiences with local food and farms have changed over the years.

The research center is engaged in many projects, including a multi-year survey of southern Appalachian farmers. Annual interviews with a core group of farmers track the economic, social, and environmental factors that play a role in local food production. These interviews help researchers understand the challenges and opportunities that exist for farmers and what kind of actions need to be taken to overcome those barriers and take advantage of opportunities.

Talking to local food consumers is another key part of the research center’s work. Ongoing surveys ask people at farmers markets, farm tours, and other local food events to describe how these kinds of experiences influence the way they think about farms and the decisions they make about food and eating. The data helps ASAP understand the value of these experiences for furthering the development of the region’s food system.

More information about ASAP’s Local Food Research Center and its findings can be found at www.ASAPconnections.org

Farm to School taste tests give kids a chance to try new vegetables and learn about local farms. ASAP visited N. Buncombe Elementary school's cafeteria during a bustling lunch hour to give kids a taste of raw sweet potatoes.

(Photo courtesy Buncombe County Schools Communications Dept.)

For most of the region, agriculture is in a state of transition. For example, burley tobacco once dominated farming in the Southern Appalachians. It was a major cash crop at the center of the region’s agriculture for over a century. But the economics of tobacco farming changed and by the mid-1990s, it became clear that federal support programs for tobacco farming would eventually end.

In many areas in transition, communities turned to local food systems as a means to keep farms and build community resilience. Localized food production allows farms to produce food that is aligned with a community’s needs rather than just global demand. Farms can connect with the community, learn what customers want and produce more the following year. This feedback allows food systems to evolve and grow and serve the communities they are a part of.

The loss of tobacco could have been devastating to the Appalachian region’s agricultural base, but the local food movement is helping to build a resilient economy that is anchored in the region’s natural resources and people. Investing in the knowledge and skills of local farmers and other entrepreneurs has helped local farms survive the loss of tobacco. Our region’s local food movement continues to support the development of healthy food systems that benefit the community.

ASAP tracks these changes through its Local Food Research Center. Data and writings about the impact of local food systems can be found at www.ASAPConnections.org

Tomato season has come and gone and summer squash is a distant memory, but local food thrives all year long in the Southern Appalachians.

There are many vegetables that stay fresh during the winter months, including giant kohlrabi and other root vegetables that can be stored until early spring, and spinach varieties that can grow in hoop houses nearly all winter.

Many communities host farmers markets throughout the year, including Asheville and several rural mountain towns where demand is high. Even if your area doesn’t have a winter market, there are ways to support local food and farms throughout the year.

Maintaining relationships with farmers during the winter is a way to stay engaged with the community year round. So before the regular market season ends, ask farmers where to find their products during the winter. Many farms supply local grocery stores and co-ops with meats, cheeses, and other specialty products.

Asking restaurants which local foods they use is another way to stay connected. Several area restaurants go out of their way to include locally-grown greens, apples, and spinach in their winter menus. Talking to restaurants and grocers about local food demonstrates consumer demand and encourages them to seek out local products.

It’s also not too early to start thinking about CSAs or Community Supported Agriculture. In fact, a growing number of farms and dairies offer home delivery throughout the winter. And in March, ASAP hosts a CSA fair where people can sign up for weekly CSA boxes and support farmers as they get ready for the upcoming growing season.

Information about year-round CSAs and winter farmers markets can be found at www.asapconnections.org

A stroll through the local farmers market is like walking through a cornucopia of abundance. Sweet potatoes are piled high near yellow onions and fresh greens. But before these ingredients are ready for the soup pot, a transaction must be made.

There are often financial barriers that separate people from fresh, healthy food. Several farmers markets in the region now accept SNAP tokens or vouchers. Once known as food stamps, SNAP is a nationwide effort to help low-income people access healthy food.

In some North Carolina mountain communities, a USDA pilot project will test innovative ways to better engage all communities with the abundance of fresh local produce available at the markets. A new USDA grant will help the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project connect people in Buncombe, Haywood, and Henderson counties with healthy food.

ASAP will foster relationships with local agencies and nonprofits that already help low-income people live healthy lives. Through this new grant, faith-based groups and social service agencies will help open the pathways to explain how SNAP works at farmers markets and to encourage the people they serve to make going to the market part of their eating routine.

It’s all about accessibility. When our entire community can access healthy food, all of our lives are improved.

East Fork Farm is part of a growing movement of Appalachian farmers who raise free-range turkeys for Thanksgiving.

The way we eat and the way we live are intertwined. Agriculture sustains us and connects us with the farmers who grow our food and the markets, grocers, chefs, and home cooks that bring it to our table.

For over 20 years, the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project - or ASAP - has helped local farms flourish. The nonprofit organization works to support farmers by creating awareness about the value of local food offering resources to growers, among many other things.

Connecting farmers with food buyers, certifying local food as Appalachian Grown, and putting together the Local Food Guide are just a few ways that ASAP supports local food.

Building community is also a key piece of ASAP’s work. Organizing and supporting farmers markets across the region encourages the public to learn about local food and to form bonds with the farmers they see each week.

Engaging the next generation is also important. ASAP’s Farm-to-School program encourages local schools to incorporate gardening, cooking, and farm field trips into their lesson plans. Building positive relationships between kids and local food enriches their lives from the ground up and fosters a link between our farms and our future.

Each Monday on WNCW 88.7, ASAP will share stories from our local food community. Videos, photos, and ways to get involved can be found anytime at ASAP Connections dot org.