Looking for local, organic food? Here are a few of our favorite local food search engines.

Photo by Anathoth Garden in Cedar Grove, NC

Photo by Anathoth Garden in Cedar Grove, NC

 

Eat Wild – Eat Wild’s national Directory of Farms lists more than 1,400 pasture-based farms, with more farms being added each week. It is the most comprehensive source for grass-fed meat and dairy products in the United States.

 

Local Harvest – Local Harvest’s national directory lists over 30,000 family farms and farmers markets, along with restaurants and grocery stores that feature local food. They have a CSA search page, with additional tips on choosing a CSA to fit your needs. The directory currently has 1,448 listings from North Carolina and 386 from South Carolina.

NC Farm Fresh – North Carolina Farm Fresh is a directory of pick-your-own farms, roadside farm markets, and farmers markets throughout North Carolina. It is designed to help the consumer find the freshest locally grown fruits, vegetables, Christmas trees, ornamental plants, flowers, and herbs. You can narrow your search by county, Certified Organic, CSA, Pick Your Own, and Roadside Market. There’s also a great informational diagram of what’s in season in North Carolina. The website lists a disclaimer that the information was compiled in 2005 and encourages users to call farms or markets in advance of visiting.

 

Find Local Food (Midlands South Carolina) – Developed by Clemson and the Midlands Food Collaborative, this search tool can help consumers find CSAs by type of product offered, roadside stands by type of product offered, restaurants and grocers with local food, distributors/wholesalers, wineries, and farmers markets.

Piedmont Grown (Piedmont, NC) – Directory includes farms, farmers, and local food system businesses that are certified Piedmont Grown. Piedmont Grown is a certification program that wants to make sure that farm products grown, raised, and made in the Piedmont Region are clearly identified and promoted everywhere you buy food and farm fresh products.

 

ASAP’s Local Food Guide (Western NC and Southern Appalachia) – Search by location, type of service (artisan food, bakers, b&bs, etc…), or farm features (CSA, U-pick)
Eat Well Guide – Search over 25,000 hand-picked restaurants, farms, markets and other sources of local, sustainable food. Search by location and/or category, or check out our city guides to find tailored listings for restaurants and other sustainable vendors in cities across the US.

 

Local Dirt – Need a little more organic, grass-fed, heirloom or free-range in your life? Local Dirt is your place to find and buy fresh, local food directly from the family farm.

 

Have another great local food search engine for the Carolinas? Email us!