NC Association of County Commissioners

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Sustainability of Local Foods System in Franklin
CountBuy Fresh....Buy Local
NC Association of County Commissioners April 9,
2009 Martha Mobley Extension
Agent Agriculture, Franklin County
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National Publicity
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Americas Foodiest Small Town
October 2008
Imagine a place where foodies not only have a
favorite chef, but also a favorite farmer a
place where the distance between the organic farm
and the award-winning restaurant is mere miles a
place where a sustainable future is foreseeable.
It's all a reality in Durham-Chapel Hill. By
Andrew Knowlton Photograph by Sian Kennedy
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Overview of Agriculture

• 33,700 acres in cropland
• 574 farms in the county
• 7,679 acres in pasture
• Voluntary Agricultural Districting 53 farms
  with 13,682 acres in program
• 17 farms in Goodness Grows in NC
• 16 farms in the Century Farm Member program
• 151,063 acres classified as prime farmland

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Commonly Grown Produce

• Apples - Beans - Beets
• Blueberries - Broccoli - Cabbage
• Cauliflower - Cantaloupe - Carrots
• Collards - Corn - Cucumbers
• Endive - Greens - Gourds
• Herbs - Peas - Peppers
• Plums - Pumpkins - Squash
• Strawberries - Sweet Potatoes - Tomatoes
• Turnips - Watermelons - Zucchini

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Meat, Poultry, Eggs

• Natural Beef
• Pasture Raised Pork
• Pastured Poultry
• Free Range Eggs
• Meat Goats
• Dairy Goats
• Natural Honey

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Why buy local?

• By supporting the local farmer, you sustain the
  farmers livelihood and benefits from fresh
  seasonal fruit, vegetables, and local meats
  while strengthening the local economy.
• Locally grown or raised vegetables, fruit and
  local meats taste better and help support a
  healthy lifestyle.
• You help preserve our beautiful farming landscape
  and keep our rural heritage alive.
• Local farms teach us how to be better stewards of
  the environment. By growing, processing, and
  distributing foods within our region, we use less
  fossil fuels for delivery and less need for
  chemicals for added preservatives.

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Consumer Dissatisfaction

• Health Aspects
• Contaminated food (food recalls)
• No growth hormones, antibiotics, GMOs
• Production practices (confinement, chemical)
• Too much use of corn and soybean products
• Taste and Freshness
• Animal Welfare
• Impact on the Environment
• Profitability of Farmers
• No connection with who grows their food

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Farmers Discontent

• 89 of a farm familys income comes from off the
  farm
• The average age of farmers is 55.3 years old
• Farm prices for commodities lags far behind the
  consumer price index
• The agribusiness industry has been increasingly
  consolidated
• Access to markets vs. problems of the urban
  fringe
• Farm succession or sell for development

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Food Security

• Attacks on centralized food systems would have a
  far greater impact than on local food systems
• Energy intensity (food travels an average of 1500
  miles)
• Imported Foods
• 80 of seafood
• 45 of fresh fruit
• 17 of its fresh vegetables
• Growing amount of processed and frozen food from
  Asia

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Local Self-Reliance

• Rapidly rising energy prices could cause
  disruptions in the food supply
• Most of our food today comes from other places
• Locally produced food keeps money and wealth in
  the local economy

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Mike Walden, NCSU Economist

• 1 spent on a locally produced product is
  doubled once it works it way through the local
  economy, compared to a 50-cents impact from a
  product made outside the local area and sold
  here.

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Challenges

• Local food infrastructure
• Investment for rebuilding the infrastructure
• Soil Fertility
• Making agriculture more energy efficient
  (resolarizing)

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Opportunities

• Size of the local market
• More profitable family farms
• More vibrant rural economies
• Healthier people
• A safer food supply
• Energy production (solar farms)
• Building community and community self-reliance
• Transition of agriculture to a younger generation

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Understand Your Customers Needs

• Not taking the time to understand customer needs
  is how industries get into trouble. Most
  industries spend considerable time doing this,
  but it is something that agriculture and the food
  industry has not done a very good job of.

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Practices Being Adopted by Profitable Small Farms

• Production of foods for the local market
• Direct marketing
• Season extension
• Cooperation instead of competition
• Diverse crops and livestock instead of
  monocultures
• Designing systems that mimic the way nature works
• Finding ways to reduce energy and fertilization
  inputs (waste to resources)

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Local Food Events

• May 16 17 6th Annual Franklin County Farm,
  Food, Crafts Tour Festival
• LOCAL Food Festival with band
• Farm Life Photography Contest
• Youth Fishing Rodeo, Sat. morning
• 5K Walk/Run Benefit, Sun. morning
• NC Goat Sheep Producers Chefs Cookoff, August
  17th

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Where to search for Franklin County products

• www.FranklinCountyFarmFresh.com
• Email martha_mobley_at_ncsu.edu or
• william_strader_at_ncsu.edu
• Call our local Extension Center,
• [phone]

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Buy Fresh Buy Local
Thank you! Any Questions?