July 2017 — Taylor Hayes graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill last December with degrees in Southern Studies and Information Science. She has hands-on production experience, having worked in community gardens through high school and on farms all through college; she currently works with Ran-Lew Dairy in Snow Camp, NC.
Taylor was interested in the apprenticeship with Piedmont Food and Agricultural Processing Center (PFAP) as a way to learn about a side of the local food supply chain that she not experienced yet – the business and retail side. At PFAP’s shared commercial kitchen and food entrepreneur incubator, she has been helping to develop a road map for those looking to start a food business. As a result, she has developed expertise in many topics related to food entrepreneurship: from food safety, to establishing an LLC, to making business plans. Being a part of this project with PFAP has made her into a resource for other people, and it has been empowering for her to be able to help aspiring entrepreneurs.
Before the apprenticeship, Taylor was considering moving out of state and perhaps changing her career path. But being a part of PFAP and building her network through the apprenticeship has convinced her that she wants to stay in North Carolina and work in food and agriculture. She is undecided about whether she wants to manage a farm, or work in another type of agricultural business, but either way her experience at PFAP will be invaluable. “I feel like a sponge, I have learned so much!” Taylor says of her apprenticeship.
This article originally appeared in the June/July 2017 NC Growing Together Newsletter.