This report presents the findings from an analysis of primary data from the Local Food Guide exploring changes in the growing practices of farmers producing food for local markets in Western North Carolina from 2008 to 2016. Overall, the findings show that every production practice listed in the Guide grew but with notable differences between their growth rates and ratio to farmers. Organic (non-certified) and GMO-free were practiced by the largest numbers of farmers in 2016 and experienced the greatest proportional growth over the eight year period. Animal Welfare Approved and Certified Naturally Grown practices were reported by the fewest number of farms in 2016, but both experienced positive proportional growth. Conventional, biodynamic, and certified organic were the only practices that experienced a proportional decrease between 2008 and 2016.

A secondary analysis examined the growing practices of farms in the Guide that sell exclusively through direct markets (i.e., farmers markets, farm stands, u-pick, community supported agriculture). The results follow a very similar pattern to the primary analysis but with more substantial proportional changes.

The Growth and Transition of Sustainable Production Practices in WNC.

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 every year to assess the impact of program services and support and gather feedback to shape the program’s future direction. This report contains the findings from the survey sent to 852 Appalachian Grown farmers in January of 2018 in which they were asked about their experiences in 2017. 

AG 2017 Producer Survey Report

This report presents the findings of an analysis of Census of Agriculture data to assess changes that occurred to food and farms in Western North Carolina (WNC) in relation to the “tobacco buyout” and to an effort to build a more localized food and farming economy.  In WNC, the mid-1990s marked the beginning of a significant period of transition in agriculture. After more than 70 years as the dominant cash crop for farmers, production of burley tobacco was entering a period of sharp decline. Anticipating the economic and cultural impacts the loss of tobacco would have on communities, a group of farmers and citizens launched a local food campaign in 2000 to provide farmers with alternatives.

In this report, WNC is a 20-county region in the Appalachian region of North Carolina that consistently grew burley tobacco under the federal quota and price support program. Nine of the 20 counties, which are the focus of the analysis, accounted for the majority of tobacco production prior to the buyout. The analysis, which used data from the 1997 to 2012 censuses, shows significant shifts in agriculture related to tobacco and food production for local markets. Though the region experienced a dramatic loss of farms with the end of tobacco, the census period just after the 2004 buyout shows the region’s farm loss leveled off with a rate far less than the state and US loss rates. The data suggest that as tobacco declined production for local markets increased with an increase in production of fruits and vegetables and in the value of direct sales.

Full Report: The End of Tobacco and the Rise of Local Food in Western North Carolina