The NC 10% Campaign — which encourages all North Carolinians to spend 10% of their existing food dollars on locally grown and produced foods — has taken off in 2012! The Campaign’s website is now tracking over $16 million in local foods purchases by more than 4900 individuals and 600 businesses.
Partnerships are key to the NC 10% Campaign’s success. In March, Lowes Foods — a family-owned, Winston Salem-based chain of grocery stores — announced that it was signing on as a major partner. “Lowes Foods represents the largest grocery chain to sign on to the 10% Campaign, with over one hundred stores in North Carolina alone” said Teisha Wymore, coordinator of the NC 10% Campaign.
In addition to what is featured in its produce aisles, Lowes Foods will offer local produce through its “Locally Grown Club“, where customers can order boxes of fresh local produce online and pick them up in the grocery store. Much like a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program, the boxes will include information about the farmers, recipes, and suggestions for how to prepare the fresh produce.
The NC 10% Campaign remains committed to community engagement and outreach, as well. In May, Campaign staff kicked off a new series of local foods dinners called “Sunday Suppers” at Zely and Ritz in Raleigh. The events will benefit the Campaign’s work to build a local food economy in North Carolina. The next “Sunday Supper” will be June 10 at Piedmont restaurant in Durham.
The NC 10% Campaign’s message is also resonating at college campuses from the mountains to the coast. UNC-Wilmington Campus Dining, UNC-Asheville Dining Services, UNC-Greensboro Dining Services, UNC-Charlotte, NC A&T School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, UNC-Pembroke Regional Center for Economic Development and North Carolina State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences have all signed on as partners.
For more information, or to join the NC 10% Campaign, visit www.nc10percent.com.
From the May 2012 E-Newsletter