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Get yours: WNC farm calendar benefits AgOptions program that helps local farmers |
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The photographs and stories of more than 50 Western North Carolina farms are featured in a 2012 wall calendar that can be purchased at select Asheville stores and some N.C. Cooperative Extension Centers in the region. Each year, WNC Agricultural Options produces a calendar highlighting grant recipients who received support from the program, which assists farmers who are diversifying or expanding their operations. --Mountain Xpress, December 7, 2011. (Read more).
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Grants for farm diversification, local agriculture groups |
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Small farmers needing help might just find the financial boost they need through WNC Agricultural Options. The group this year will award $150,000 to 35 or so farm businesses and farmer-led groups. Smoky Mountain News, November 9, 2011. (Read more). |
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WNC Ag grants offer funds for farm diversification |
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Randy and Megan Smith want others to know exactly what a difference $6,000 can make to a farmer. The Smiths expanded their pasture poultry operation via a $6,000 grant from the WNC Agricultural Options grant program this year. Tryon Daily Bulletin, November 6, 2011. (Read more.) |
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Innovative contest lets farms plow extra green |
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It's the time of year again for local farmers to test their ingenuity for some extra money and a path toward future success. Now in its eighth year, WNC Agricultural Options will award $150,000 to about 35 farm businesses and farmer-led groups throughout WNC in 2012. Hendersonville Times-News, November 3, 2011. (Read more). |
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Jewel of the Blue Ridge Vineyard celebrates open house |
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Marshall's newest "grape grangers," Chuck and Jeanie Blethen, have a vision of a new industry in the mountains of western North Carolina: Native cold-hardy muscadines as a heritage crop to replace tobacco and provide a stable source of income for farmers. The locally established grape variety are also for those who just want to grow grapes for their own use. -Special to The News-Record & Sentinel, August 3, 2011. (Read more). |
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A Step Toward Saving the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission |
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A Step in the Right Direction. This morning, the North Carolina State Senate Appropriations subcommittee released a draft budget that includes funding and support for the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission. This isn’t a win yet – the Senate budget still needs to pass the whole Senate, and then it will need to be reconciled with the House budget, which eliminated the Commission – but it’s a big step in the right direction. -Claire Heirmann, Outreach & Communications Associate of RAFI-USA, May 24, 2011. (Read More).
Special note 6/16/11: The N.C. General Assembly passed a state budget that provides $2 million annually for two years for the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission.
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Don’t pull the plug! Tobacco Trust Fund Key to N.C. Agriculture’s Future |
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The N.C. House’s version of the state budget proposes to permanently eliminate the Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, putting that money into the General Fund to help cover the budget shortfall. Since 2001, the Tobacco Trust Fund has received an annual appropriation of several million dollars from the General Assembly. These funds were awarded to the state under the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (in the current version of the House budget, these moneys are called Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement Funds). Now that this has become a hot topic in the budget debate, some have been wondering what the Tobacco Trust Fund actually does for small farmers and local, healthy food. The name of the fund doesn’t describe the breadth of work it supports. -Roland McReynolds, Mountain Xpress, May 16, 2011. (Read more).
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N.C. House proposes eliminating Tobacco Trust Fund Commission |
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N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission has very wisely invested the Master Settlement monies back into rural communities to help this state’s farmers survive the major transitions in agriculture created by the demise of tobacco as a cash crop for family farmers. This transition is still going on and is complicated further by the economic crisis that has impacted farmers and rural North Carolina most severely. -Linda Shaw, Executive Director of RAFI-USA, April 28, 2011. (Read more).
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Weed problem? Mills River couple will rent you a goat herd |
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Ron and Cheryl Searcy's company motto easily could be "Have goats, will travel." If you've got the weeds, they've got the goats — about 300 of them. And they're glad to bring them to your property, set up a fence and let those voracious rascals start mowing. After nearly four years in business, the Searcys have done at least 50 different jobs in several states. Most jobs require 25-30 goats and three-four weeks on site. —The Asheville Citizen-Times, March 14, 2011. Read more (pdf file). |
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New grants turn dreams into a reality for local farmers |
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In support of local agriculture, Madison County farmers received a boost last week to assist in diversification, marketing and distribution efforts. With the help of $33,000 in grants from the WNC Agricultural Options program, seven local farmers will receive funding for new agricultural ventures. "The sustainability of the agricultural industry in Western North Carolina is dependent upon the innovation of farmers and their willingness to try new things," said Ross Young, Madison County Extension Director and WNC AgOptions steering committee leader. "This region is a leader in agriculture innovation." —The News-Record & Sentinel, Feb. 16, 2011. Read more. |
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Trosly Farm Awarded WNC AgOptions Grant |
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The WNC Agricultural Options program recently awarded Trosly Farm in Elk Park a grant to assist in farm diversification and marketing and distribution efforts..... "We... want to maximize the use of our [5-acre] farm and make it as productive as possible while maintaining the integrity of the land," Amos Nidiffer said. —The Avery Journal-Times, Feb. 16-17, 2011. Read it here. |
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