ASAP and our partner organizations offer free one-on-one consulting to farmers in our Western North Carolina and the Southern Appalachian region. If your farm is in need of assistance or advice in areas including marketing and branding, market outlets, business planning, and managing production risk, you may schedule a consultation. Below is a brief overview of what consultations can include, but please contact ASAP or our partner organizations for details.
Market Planning and Support
ASAP offers Appalachian Grown farms one-on-one support for market planning and assessment, as well as marketing for all Appalachian Grown farms. This can include discussion of new or existing enterprises, potential market opportunities and requirements, connections with area buyers, and direct or wholesale marketing resources. For more information contact David Smiley at david@asapconnections.org.
Business Planning
A-B Tech Small Business Center serves the region through partnerships with a collection of federal, state, and local organizations. Its counseling, training, and implementation opportunities provide entrepreneurs and farmers with the tools and resources needed to launch or grow their small business. For more information, contact Duane Adams at (828) 398-7951 or duanecadams@abtech.edu.
Production Planning & Assistance
County and regional Cooperative Extension professionals are an important community resource for farmers looking for training and technical assistance. Cooperative Extension will be the primary production expertise for this project, please contact your local county agent for production related questions or assistance. For additional support contact Area Production Specialized Agent Craig Mauney (828-989-7900 or rcmauney@ncsu.edu), who can assistant you or can direct you to state and regional experts with in the field and give you research based knowledge and resources.
Referral Program for Legal and Financial Services
ASAP is currently offering a referral program for farmers to engage legal and financial services to build business capacity and profitability.
Successful applicants may benefit from:
- One hour of legal consultation with Ward and Smith, P.A. Ward and Smith is a full-service law firm providing a variety of legal counsel to farmers through a one-hour consultation.
- Up to 10 hours of CPA services from Austin CPA, which may include tax assistance, long-term planning, and strategic financial advice. Services are provided at no charge to participants.
View a complete list of eligibility requirements for the referral program here. View eligibility requirements for accounting software stipends here. Applications will be reviewed and awarded on a first come, first served basis. For more information contact Jason Roehrig at jason@asapconnections.org.