monthly news from ASAP    |   JULY 2023    |    asapconnections.org

Farms Announced for ASAP's 2023 Farm Tour
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24 farms (at 22 locations) will participate in ASAP's 2023 Farm Tour : [link removed] on Sept. 23-24, 12-5 p.m.! These farms, including nine new to the tour in 2023, represent some of the amazing diversity of agriculture happening in our region. Pick your own apples or Asian pears, feed friendly farm animals, learn about regenerative agriculture, sample chef-prepared food, and much more! Farms are organized by cluster to help you plan and maximize your time on the farm. 
Leicester Cluster: Franny’s Farm/The Utopian Seed Project : [link removed], Montgomery Sky Farm : [link removed], Good Wheel Farm : [link removed], Alta Vista Farm/CrossCreek Farm : [link removed], Two Trees Farm (Sustainabillies) : [link removed] Cluster: Big Ivy Little Farm : [link removed], Burley Stick Farm : [link removed],  : [link removed] Fibrations : [link removed]
: [link removed] Cluster: TendWell Farm : [link removed], Wild East Farm : [link removed], Crow Fly Farms : [link removed], Tomas C. Farms : [link removed],  : [link removed]’s One Fortune Farm : [link removed]
: [link removed] Cluster: Root Cause Farm : [link removed], Flying Cloud Farm : [link removed], Hickory Nut Gap Farm : [link removed]
Henderson Cluster: Bee-utiful Farm and Garden : [link removed], Stump Farms : [link removed], Marked Tree Vineyard : [link removed], Pilot Mountain Pears : [link removed], Justus Orchard : [link removed], Raspberry Fields : [link removed]
Learn more : [link removed] about what each farm will offer on the tour and use our Farm Tour map : [link removed] to start planning your weekend. Advance passes ($35, good for all passengers in your vehicle) are on sale now : [link removed]. You can also sign up to volunteer : [link removed] for one day of the tour and tour for free the day you aren't working.



Meet Your Farmer: Lee's One Fortune Farm
: [link removed]'t wait for the Farm Tour? Check out the latest Meet Your Farmer : [link removed] video from Growing Minds to check out Lee's One Fortune Farm! Chue, Tou, and Ariel Lee tell us about growing snap peas, as well as crops unique to their Hmong community. 
"We grow things that are not found in this part of the world like rice and cassava, which is a root vegetable, and you can also use the leaves," says Tou. 
You can find more Meet Your Farmer videos, as well as related lesson plans and classroom resources on the Growing Minds website : [link removed]. Thanks to Fusion Digital Media : [link removed] for producing the video!



Vote to Support Double SNAP for Fruits & Vegetables
: [link removed] for the Asheville Chamber of Commerce 125th Anniversary grants is open through July 31. ASAP is a finalist to win $10,000 to help support Double SNAP for Fruits and Vegetables at nine farmers markets in Buncombe County. You can vote once per day for as many organizations as you'd like. Vote now! : [link removed]
 

If ASAP wins, the grant will help match SNAP dollars, increasing the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables our neighbors can purchase. This grant will also support training and assistance for farmers market managers, farmers market engagement activities, and promotions for farmers markets. All these activities help build and sustain the farmers markets we love and visit weekly.



FACES OF LOCAL
Melinda Bullen
 

: [link removed] our Faces of Local interview this month, we chatted with Melinda Bullen, who has volunteered for several ASAP events, including last year’s Farm Tour : [link removed]. 
 

What have you enjoyed about volunteering for ASAP?
 

Well, first and foremost, I’ve really appreciated the opportunity to learn more about our local farms and farmers. Having lived in urban environments most of my life and purchasing most of my food from grocery stores, connecting with these alive spaces and the stewards of them has been such a joy and has helped me understand our region’s environment, economy, and culture more deeply.
 

But I also have to mention the relationships I’ve developed as a volunteer with ASAP. Each event I go to, I meet so many people invested in our local food scene, from other volunteers, ASAP staff, local farmers, and chefs. There are so many people passionate and committed to this essential local resource! It’s helped me feel more deeply rooted in our community and has introduced me to some folks that I now call friends.
 

What’s something you’ve learned about farming or local food that you didn’t know before volunteering for ASAP?
 

When you connect with ASAP through their supported farmers markets, the Farm Tour, the newsletter, or other events throughout the year, you’re always learning something new about local food. Something I was surprised to learn since starting to volunteer with ASAP was the impact it’s had on my own daily choices regarding food. While I always had interest and curiosity about our food systems, it was when I started to connect with our own food community through ASAP that I found myself making different and intentional choices about when to buy certain items and where to buy them. So, while there’s a ton of learning opportunities through volunteering with ASAP there’s also the possibility one will learn more about themselves in the process.
 

What was your favorite part of the Farm Tour last year?
 

When I volunteered last year, I let the coordinator know that I was happy to go to any farm in the region. I not only wanted to make it easy on the volunteer coordinator, but I wanted to be open to wherever I was sent because I knew that each and every farm offered unique learning. And I was so right! I got to volunteer at a hydroponic microgreens farm. It was one of the smallest farms featured in the Farm Tour last year and provided such an intimate view into the experience of the farmer. Walking one-on-one through his greenhouses while he talked about his process and why he chose the route of hydroponics was fascinating. And then to understand more about how his microgreens land on the plates of some of our best restaurants in Asheville was so cool!
 

I absolutely loved doing the Farm Tour because not only did I get a chance to hang out and get to know the farmer but I also met people from all over who, like me, are curious about our WNC farms, are huge supporters of local food, and who really believe in the power of understanding where our food come from.
 

What tip would you offer a first-time visitor on the Farm Tour?
 

Try to see as many farms as you can while also trying to really be present at the ones you visit. I know… it’s a tricky balance! LOL. But it’s a powerful experience to see the wide variety of farm sizes, styles, and processes. And while you want to take your time at each farm to get to know the people, the land, and ask questions, thinking strategically about your travel plan to the different farms will help you get the most out of the experience.
 

What’s your favorite way to enjoy the bounty of local food in the summertime?
 

I really love buying fresh local food and produce and making a big meal for friends. Because I like to go BIG, it’s something I only do a couple of times during the summer. But how can any of us pass up the gorgeous fresh food from WNC, the great summer weather, and the opportunity to be outside with friends, family, and our fur babies!
 

Want to volunteer for this year's Farm Tour? You can sign up here! : [link removed] THE MONTH

Peach and Corn Salsa : [link removed] corn at farmers markets With peaches and corn coming in at farmers markets and farm stands, we're re-sharing this recipe from Caleb Gaydish and Aubrey Fleming, MedServe-AmeriCorps Fellows at WNC Community Health Services. As part of ASAP’s Farm Fresh for Health : [link removed] initiative, Caleb and Aubrey put together a virtual cooking demo and farmers market shopping trip. Watch it on our website : [link removed], or just make the recipe yourself!
 
Ingredients
1 cup local grape or cherry tomatoes2 ears sweet corn2-3 medium peaches1-2 avocados1 small red onion1 small bunch cilantro1 jalapeño pepper (or substitute shishito or other sweet peppers as desired)Juice of 1 limeSalt and pepper to tasteTortilla chips
Directions
Halve the grape or cherry tomatoes and place them in a large mixing bowl.Husk corn and cut kernels off of the cob. Add to the bowl. Dice peaches and avocado and add to the bowl. Finely chop cilantro and red onion. Add to the bowl. Cut off the jalapeño stem, dice jalapeño, and add to bowl (tip: halve the pepper and remove seeds before dicing for a less spicy salsa).Mix all ingredients in the bowl.Add lime juice, salt, and pepper to taste.Serve with tortilla chips.

MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
Fewer peaches on the farm means fewer peaches at market, in stores, on restaurant plates and in specialty items, and less money in everyone’s pocket. That means a less secure food system. Fortunately, agencies like ASAP and the Asheville Area Food Guild are helping to connect farms, businesses and consumers to provide economic insulation from the notorious unpredictability of mountain weather. “A strong relationship between farm and buyer can help weather both metaphorical as well as literal storms, allowing for both farm resiliency as well as improved quality of product.” 
—David Smiley, ASAP's Local Food Campaign Program Manager, in Mountain Xpress : [link removed]
 

Haywood Christian Ministries credits the pandemic with helping build relationships with local farms, the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, MountainWise and others as all worked together during a time of supply shortages and other health concerns. “We started looking at what we’re good at, and in conversations with local farmers we learned about their desire to help people who need food and the difficulty of doing that. It’s hard to grow extra crops to donate, and a lot of agencies like ours can’t afford wholesale prices. But now we’ll be purchasing from a few farms at wholesale rates thanks to grant money. It’s a program we hope to expand.” 
—Blake Hart, director of Haywood Christian Ministries, in The Mountaineer : [link removed] ASAP
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asapconnections.org : [link removed] | growing-minds.org : [link removed] | appalachiangrown.org : [link removed]
  
ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food.
 

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ASAP (Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project) - 306 W. Haywood Street - Asheville - NC - 28801

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