Food hubs in both Eastern and Western North Carolina are working to grow their reach, support more farmers, and increase access to local food thanks in part to strategic funding from the Golden LEAF Foundation.

Across Southeastern North Carolina, Feast Down East is scaling its operations to meet rising demand from farmers and buyers. The Golden LEAF Foundation Board of Directors awarded Feast Down East $250,000 through the Open Grants Program to increase refrigeration and storage capacity at its Burgaw food hub and Wilmington satellite location.

The horticultural industry in Western North Carolina is booming, driving both economic growth and workforce demand. To meet this need, the Golden LEAF Foundation has funded projects to help with both the training and infrastructure required to prepare the next generation of skilled professionals to strengthen the state’s number one industry, agriculture.

The University of Mount Olive is building a new livestock/forage training facility that will provide research and educational opportunities for college students and the greater agricultural community.

On March 4, Golden LEAF President, Chief Executive Officer Scott T. Hamilton spoke at the groundbreaking of Blue Ridge Community College’s new automated greenhouse. In