Community Food Strategies: Food System Network Building in NC

<p>As I have written about before, I see local food organizing as a powerful community building enterprise. Because everyone eats, local food efforts literally can have an impact on entire communities. And because local food organizing touches upon all aspects of community capital (social, environmental, financial, and so on), focusing community development energies on local food seems like an effective strategy to achieve at least some broader community development goals. Perhaps no state in the U.S. has a better infrastructure for local food organizing than North Carolina. In this brief post, I’d like to draw attention to the supportive infrastructure that is helping make NC a national leader in local food efforts.</p> <p></p> <p>There are many great organizations with expertise and on-the-ground capacity-building assistance when it comes to local food organizing. The Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS) is part of the state’s cooperative extension system, housed institutionally at NC State University. CEFS is “one of the nation’s most important centers for research, extension, and education in sustainable agriculture and community-based food systems. It is recognized as a national and international leader in the local foods movement, and is celebrated for its work in building consensus around policies, programs and actions that facilitate a vibrant local food economy.”</p> <p>The Carolina Farm Stewardship Association (CFSA) is “a farmer-driven, membership-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that helps people in the Carolinas grow and eat local, organic foods by advocating for fair farm and food policies, building the systems family farms need to thrive, and educating communities about local, organic agriculture.” CFSA’s mission is to [...]</p>