Plan Overview
Plan Information
| Category | Database entry |
| Plan Region | North Carolina |
| Publication Date | 2010 |
| Entry reviewed by original author | Yes |
| PDF attachment | View Full Report |
| Plan Title | From Farm to Fork: A Guide to Building North Carolina’s Sustainable Local Food Economy |
| Webpage | https://cefs.ncsu.edu/resources/from-farm-to-fork-a-guide-to-building-north-carolinas-sustainable-local-food-economy-2010/ |
| Author(s) | Jennifer Curtis, Dr. Nancy Creamer, and Tessa Eliza Thraves via The Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS), which is a partnership between N.C. State University, N.C. Agricultural and Technical State University, and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS). Special thanks is given to 15 Working Issue Teams (WITs) facilitators whose leadership was critical to the creation of this document. |
| Author Type | Partnership; Non-Profit; University |
| Region Type | State |
| Funding Sources | Foundations |
| Funders | Golden LEAF Foundation; Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation; N.C. Rural Center – Agricultural Advancement Consortium; W.K. Kellogg Foundation |
| Total Project Budget | Unspecified |
| Plan Goals | Central Vision: North Carolina has a strong local food economy where all North Carolinians regularly consume fresh, healthy foods that are grown, raised, caught, processed, distributed and marketed sustainably by local producers and businesses. Objectives of this written document (and accomplished by its publication) are to:1. Articulate shared values and components of sustainable local food systems;2. Identify and promote collaboration among existing local and regional organizations;3. Learn from existing initiatives and identify best practices and potential models; 4. Develop and prioritize actions at the state and local levels, including needed policy recommendations and program initiatives. Throughout this process of formulating this document, the Farm to Fork initiative outlines nine issue areas and goals to accomplish (see “Plan Recommendation Structure” below). |
| Intended Audience | Intended audience encapsulates a broad range of agencies, and stakeholders across the state of North Carolina. |
| Plan Recommendation Structure | 9 “issue areas” (goals/priorities), each with specific sub-recommendations (see “Plan goals” above). 1. ENGAGE Decision Makers in Strategic Food-Systems Planning and Implementation,2. COORDINATE Food-Systems Policies and regulations,3. GROW new and transitioning Farmers and Secure Prime Farmland, 4. EXPAND Local Market opportunities,5. CULTIVATE Community gardens Statewide, 6. STRENGTHEN Local government Initiatives,7. ADDRESS Public health and food access disparities,8. INCREASE Consumer education and outreach,9. PROMOTE Farm-to-school programming and engage youth. Strategies were identified in conjunction with 11 “Working Issue Teams” (WITs), which each identified a “game changer” strategy earlier in the process; these 11 “game changers” are incorporated (and identified) across the recommendations. A full summary of recommendations is on p. 29. The plan also concludes with a section of recommendations for individuals, “10 Things You Can Do to Make a Difference in Your Community.” |
| Catalyst for Plan | A project born out of CEFS’s recently launched Farm to Fork initiative. |
| Creation Process | Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS) established a 75-person advisory team for the Farm to Fork initiative, which launched in 2008. Held 6 regional meetings across the state with over 1,000 participants, “including those working in the fields of agriculture, commercial fishing, community organizing, education, faith, finance, nutrition, philanthropy, planning, public health, public policy, state and local government, and youth outreach” (p. 8). Based on feedback at these meetings, CEFS identified the 9 “issue areas” (goals/objectives) around which recommendations are structured. To create recommendations, CEFS put together 11 “time-limited, topic-specific” Working Issue Teams (WITs) made up of area experts (p. 11). Each WIT identified one game changer, “ideas considered to be important to implement at the state level and doable within a short time frame (one to two years” (p. 11). CEFS Farm to Fork Working Issues Teams list: 1. Community Gardens and Farms,2. Consumer Outreach and Marketing,3. Direct Markets,4. Expanding Institutional, Retail and Food Service Markets for Small and Medium-Scale Farmers,5. Farm-to-School Programming,6. Formalizing the Initiative: Foundations and Baselines,7. Land Use and Local Government Initiatives,8. Processing and Other Food Systems Infrastructure,9. Public Health and Food Access Disparities,10. Support for New and Transitioning Farmers,11. Youth and Social Networking. CEFS then hosted a statewide summit in 2009 (“From Farm to Fork: Building a Sustainable Local Food Economy in North Carolina”) where WITs presented findings and recommendations for feedback. 420 participants attended. |
| Theoretical Framework(s) Employed | N/A |
| Theoretical Framework(s): Additional Literature | Unspecified |
| Development Timeline | 2 years |
| Implementation Strategy | Unspecified; However, although there is not a direct implementation guideline, each strategy is detailed with strong background information and contextual data. |
| Implementation Timeline | Unspecified |
| Evaluation Strategy | Unspecified |
| International Development Framework(s) | None |
| Current Plan Status | Update in progress |
| Government Adoption Status | Unknown |
| Government Adoption Status (Notes) | N/A |
| Supplemental Documents | N/A |