Food & Farm Stories

  • Mike Bean

    Mike Bean

    Mike Bean is a local chef with Finest Deli (though temporarily on hold) serving up fresh eats at farmers markets in Buncombe County. He serves on On Track WNC‘s Board of Directors and quickly shifted his cooking skills to support meal operations with World Central Kitchen to keep the people of Western North Carolina fed…

  • Vinny Bonanno

    Vinny Bonanno

    Vinny Bonanno is the Executive Director of the West Asheville Tailgate Market (WATM) since 2022, owner operator of Stretching in Public, a Make it Happen coach, and the lead on various creative projects and performances around the Asheville area. After Helene made landfall, Vinny opted to open WATM only days later. The West Asheville Tailgate…

  • Jason Treadway

    Jason Treadway

    Jason Treadway (pictured on the left) is the Director of Food and Nutrition for Verner Center for Early Learning. Verner has worked with Growing Minds to source from local farms and provide farm to school activities for the students. Jason’s staff of six serves breakfast, lunch, and snacks and two sites each day. Food is…

  • Lucy Wetzel

    Lucy Wetzel

    Lucy Wetzel (pictured on the right) and her two-year-old son Wiley are avid farmers market goers, shopping at multiple markets per week. Lucy participates in both ASAP’s Double SNAP for Fruits and Vegetables program and Farm Fresh Produce Prescription. How has the Farm Fresh Produce Prescription made an impact on your life and household?  We…

  • William Yates

    William Yates

    William Yates is an AIG (Academically or Intellectually Gifted) teacher at Waynesville Middle School. He spent three weeks this summer embedded in ASAP’s programs as part of the 2024–25 Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership. The fellowship connects outstanding educators with mentors, creating opportunities and relationships to help students understand how STEM concepts apply in…

  • Dawn Jordan

    Dawn Jordan

    Dawn Jordan, on the left, is the Agricultural Economic Development Director for Polk County, which has coordinated the NC Foothills Farm Tour as well as homestead tours in the county for many years. This year, Polk County will instead be part of ASAP’s Farm Tour! (Look for announcement of farms and other cluster areas in…


Story Archive

The Appalachian Grown region is rich with local food and farm stories—from farmers, educators, chefs, community advocates, and many more. ASAP tries to share as many of these as possible, including in our annual Local Food Guide, in our newsletters, and on social media.

From 2015 to 2021, ASAP presented Growing Local Radio, a weekly broadcast on WNCW. Stories were based on research from ASAP’s Local Food Research Center. More than 200 audio stories and transcripts from Growing Local Radio are included in the archive below.

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Recent Stories

Faces of Local: Nicole Coston June 30th, 2020 in Faces of Local

Building Community Connections at Beacon Village Farm June 29th, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

Starting a Farm During COVID-19 June 22nd, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

Community Colleges Incorporate Farm to School Learning June 15th, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

When Restaurants Closed, The Culinary Gardener Started a CSA June 8th, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

New Grant Helps Local Farmers Adapt June 1st, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

Chefs and Farmers Help People Affected by COVID-19 May 26th, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

Faces of Local: Wesley Sleight May 19th, 2020 in Faces of Local

New Farmers Market Protects Public Health May 18th, 2020 in Growing Local Radio Series

Sunburst Trout Farms Persists During COVID-19 May 11th, 2020


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