FarmsSHARE is an alternative food distribution model tackling food insecurity in the Carolinas while providing farmers, food entrepreneurs, and food hubs with resources, knowledge, and support to access high-value markets for locally-sourced, sustainably-produced foods.

Initially launched as an emergency food assistance program in 2020, CFSA developed a network of participating food hubs, farms, and farmer cooperatives to aggregate in-season, locally produced foods, packed into CSA-style food boxes.

Today, FarmsSHARE provides a free box of locally-grown produce and protein sourced from small, sustainable North Carolina farms to households in need.

“FarmsSHARE means a lot to our farmers for the simple fact that we provide them with a secure market channel, and they have the ability to scale up production.”

– Davon Goodwin, Sandhills AgInnovation Center Executive Director

Who is part of it?

FarmsSHARE currently works with 16 food hub partners to aggregate in-season, locally produced foods from approximately 280 North Carolina farms. The food hubs work with community partner organizations to distribute the food boxes (some hubs distribute directly) to people experiencing food insecurity.

There are approximately 150 community organizations delivering FarmsSHARE boxes to 75 counties across North Carolina.

 

This is a dynamic graphic that is updated regularly. There may be participating food hubs or impacted counties not yet captured.

“FarmsSHARE allows Freshlist the financial means to do the food equity work we want to do as a company. Healthy food should be a right, not a privilege. Farms should also be paid as much as possible for all of the food that they grow. This program is a wonderful melding of those two schools of thought. The same high-quality food we sell into fine dining restaurants and homes is going to feed families in areas of our city that have been shut out of the means and access to healthy food. The FarmsSHARE program also allows farmers in our network the flexibility to grow for the boxes just like they would their own CSA with the knowledge that the product has a home.”

– Erin Bradley, Freshlist Director of Operations and Farm Coordinator

How does the program work?

FarmsSHARE flow map
  1. CFSA receives public and private funding for FarmsSHARE.
  2. CFSA distributes the funding to food hubs across North Carolina.
  3. Food hub partners purchase food from local farmers, prioritizing Black, Indigenous, and other farmers of color.
  4. Food hubs pack boxes for community partner organizations.
  5. Community partner organizations pick up boxes.
  6. FarmsSHARE boxes are distributed to households in need.

“FarmsSHARE creates the opportunity for these (partner) agencies to have autonomy in their local food purchases. Providing the patrons of their services with culturally reflective and nutrient-rich produce and proteins to incorporate into their pantries and kitchens.

“FarmsSHARE increases the sales and visibility of our local farmers, helping curate economic sustainability and growth of their farms. In 2022, our farmer sales increased by over 30% as compared to 2021 through FarmsSHARE alone. A particularly meaningful piece for our farmers is that this has created opportunities for individuals and families within their communities, who utilize the services of the participating community partner agencies, to procure their products. Creating sales outlets such as this for our farmers has further uplifted our food system and close the gaps in the loop between farmers and food access causes. We are all so grateful for this valuable program.”

– Jordyn Appel-Hughes, Feast Down East Executive Director

What’s the history of FarmsSHARE?

In 2020, CFSA obtained key funding to launch the project in 2020 from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC) and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation (Blue Cross NC Foundation).

At the onset of the pandemic, restaurants and food service companies that buy from local farmers suspended service and laid off thousands of workers. As a result, many small farms lost income from restaurant sales that helped keep their farms viable.

To connect farms and hospitality workers, and to ensure everyone along the supply chain got paid fairly, CFSA developed a network of participating food hubs (six were BIPOC operated), farms (30 of which were BIPOC operated), and farmer cooperatives to aggregate in-season, locally-produced foods to distribute over 20,000 boxes to laid-off restaurant and hospitality employees.

CFSA partnered with Piedmont Culinary Guild and regional food hubs to enroll food service workers in the program. Once enrolled, laid-off workers were able to pick up a share from their former employers once a week for eight weeks. Recipients also had the option to receive farm-fresh proteins, such as eggs and meat.

CFSA received additional financial support for the FarmsSHARE pilot program from Whole Foods, Cardinal Healthcare, Duke University’s Office Durham and Community Affairs, Carolina Farm Credit and Xylem Watermark, Xylem’s Corporate Social Responsibility Program as well as many individual supporters.

“Our participation in FarmsSHARE inspired us to start our own food access program, Local Food As Medicine. In 2022 alone, we worked with eight partner agencies, purchasing food at retail price year-round totaling over $98,000 of produce and protein from 60 local farmers. It’s an honor to be able to share the bounty of our local farms with the High Country community in this way.

– Liz Whiteman, High Country Food Hub via Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture Executive Director

Frequently asked questions about FarmsSHARE

See which participating food hubs are near you and get in touch with them directly.

Let us know! We have a set number of food hubs that we can work with at once, so while we cannot make any guarantees, we’re always happy to hear from you.

See our network map (above) and get in direct contact with the organizations closest to you.

Absolutely! Anyone is welcome to make a donation at anytime. If you prefer to talk over your options, let us know, and our Development Team is happy to get in touch.