Local Food. Strong Farms. Healthy Communities.
Click to learn how your contributionASAP’s Farm Tour returns this Sept. 18-19! Visit family farms in WNC and experience local food. Read More ▶▶
Read stories from farmers and find listings for hundreds of farms, farmers markets, restaurants, travel destinations, and more.Read More ▶▶
What’s Fresh June 11-17Steamy weather and intermittent thunderstorms can make cooking meals a real drag. Times like these call for a few refrigerator staples that can perk up a simple salad or help power through an afternoon lull. Luckily, fruit and berry season is kicking into gear at farmers tailgate markets. Beyond fresh eating and desserts, these are great for making zippy vinaigrettes and icy drinks. READ MORE
February 2021: In ASAP’s mission to support Southern Appalachian farms and build a local food system, we developed the Appalachian Grown (AG) branding program in 2007 with the goal of expanding local market opportunities for farmers by providing a way for the public to easily identify products from local farms. We send a survey to all AG farms annually to assess the impact of program services and support and gather feedback to shape the program’s future direction. In addition, this year’s survey contained a new section specific to the COVID-19 pandemic. This report contains the findings from the survey sent to 775 Appalachian Grown farmers in November of 2020.
January 2021: In October of 2020, a survey was shared with farmers markets participating in ASAP’s Double SNAP program to assess the impact and gather feedback. The Double SNAP program doubles the value of a shopper’s SNAP benefits used at market. The survey was open for six weeks and collected 113 responses from market managers, vendors, and customers. A quarter of the responses came from shoppers who have utilized the SNAP program and a third were from farmers market vendors. Market managers from all eight markets who offer the program also responded. ASAP’s Local Food Research Center has identified trends and impacts of the Double SNAP program. Read the press release about the report.
March 2020: The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent closure of restaurants, schools, events, and in some places, disruption of farmers markets, is having an immediate and potentially devastating impact on farmers and vendors selling to local markets in the Southern Appalachians. In order to better understand these experiences and how to best support these farm and food businesses, ASAP surveyed the farmers and vendors in their network. Read the press release about the report.
