Bounty & Soul sows support for farmers, reaps food for the masses
Farmers Alliance program creates network of growers to address food insecurity
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
May 2, 2023
Claudie Babineaux, who manages the Farmers Alliance program for Bounty & Soul, hosts volunteers at the Dr. John Wilson Community Garden. Photo by Fred McCormick
Throughout the mountains of Western North Carolina, the warm spring sun nurtures growing crops on farmlands of all shapes and sizes. Some are quietly tucked away in corners of residential neighborhoods, while others sprawl across acres, under the shadows of the surrounding peaks.
The Farmers Alliance, an innovative program from a Black Mountain-based nonprofit organization, is harvesting the efforts of 72 of them in its mission to find healthy solutions for growing food insecurity in the region.
Bounty & Soul embarked on its mission to connect, share and celebrate nutritious food, education and community in 2014, launching an array of programs in its quest. Its biweekly Produce to the People market distributes free, healthy food to approximately 620 households per week.
The demand for access to nutrient-rich vegetables, fruits and more remained consistent for years, but supply chain issues and the economic fallout related to the COVID-19 pandemic led to a decrease in donations and food shortages, according to Bounty & Soul founder and executive director Ali Casparian.
“Over the course of the last two years, we invested our resources into the Farmers Alliance program, which is all about strengthening the local food system, by supporting local farmers and growers,” she said. “We buy produce to help keep them afloat and work with them, in their fields, with our volunteer manpower. We’ve developed an army of support through these partnerships, and they’re very reciprocal.”
‘Kind of my dream job’
Farmers Alliance, a program through local nonprofit organization Bounty & Soul, received approximately 118,000 in donated food in 2022, while assisting 72 farms throughout WNC. Photo by Fred McCormick
There were around 26 area growers participating in the Food Alliance program when Claudie Babineaux joined the Bounty & Soul team, which expanded from a pre-pandemic roster of six employees to its current staff of 15. Under Babineaux, whose diverse experience in the farming industry includes directing a food co-op in Dunedin, Florida and managing the student farm at the University of Florida, the program has expanded to include 72 partners.
After visiting the mountains to volunteer for local growers in the summers, she was impressed by the community of growers she encountered.
“I really fell in love with the farmers here,” Babineaux said. “When I was connected with Bounty & Soul it was wonderful, because one of the things that’s really important to me is that healthy food is accessible for everyone.”
The Farmers Alliance program represented an ideal opportunity to address that cause, she added.
“It’s kind of my dream job,” Babineaux said. “It really embodies everything I value in one position. Labor is one of the most challenging parts of farming, because finding it and being able to afford it are incredibly difficult, but I believe we can help with that by building a huge volunteer core.”
The program taps Bounty & Soul’s vast network of more than 350 active volunteers to help plant, maintain or harvest crops and various tasks that often overwhelm growers. In 2021, Farmers Alliance received approximately 40,000 pounds of fresh produce, while 118,000 pounds were donated last year.
“Being able to offer that supporting labor brought us a lot of new partners, and a lot more donated food,” Babineaux said. “So much of that is just about cultivating relationships and doing what we can to help the farmers who make our local food system what it is.”
The program received additional support in March, with a $35,000 grant from the Community Foundation of WNC.
“CFWNC is pleased to work with Bounty & Soul again,” CFWNC Vice President Philip Belcher said in a release announcing the grant. “Their Produce to the People and Farmers Alliance programs address both food access and the local food economy, and we are confident in Bounty & Soul’s passion and capacity for improving lives in WNC through these efforts.”
Harvesting the spirit of the Swannanoa Valley
Annie Forsthoefel, one of 72 partners in the Farmers Alliance, tends to her small farm in a residential neighborhood in Black Mountain. Photo by Fred McCormick
Farming is nothing new in the Swannanoa Valley, where the practice was essential for the survival of nearly every resident in the 18th and 19th centuries. While urbanization and industrialization has brought about the decline of many large farms, the spirit of the way of life remains strong.
Few operations bring the community together around the practice of growing fresh produce like the Dr. John Wilson Community Garden, which was established in Black Mountain in 1997 and named after its founder in the early 2000s. The program, which is now operated by the town and managed by Lucille Nelson, allows participants to rent seasonal plots, and requires them to donate 10% of the food harvested to Bounty & Soul.
The community garden has harvested approximately 50,000 pounds of fresh food for area residents struggling with food insecurity since 2008. It also represents one of many valuable partnership for Farmers Alliance, according to Babineaux.
“The soil there is really fertile, which is a testament to the stewardship there over the years,” Babineaux said. “It’s truly amazing how much food comes out of that garden.”
The site also provides Bounty & Soul with a significant educational resource, she added.
“It’s very accessible, which makes it ideal for hosting school groups,” Babineaux said. “We’ve hosted groups from Appalachian State and various colleges. Food insecurity is an important issue for young people today.”
Warren Wilson College, a partner of the Farmers Alliance program and the Dr. John Wilson Community Garden, regularly supplies groups of student volunteers who help maintain the plots reserved for donations. Other college groups and local volunteers tend to the land on a regular basis.
While the community garden spreads out over the southeastern corner of Veterans Park, other local operations, like Annie’s Farm, are nestled along tree-lined streets in Swannanoa Valley neighborhoods.
“I’ve been growing my whole life, and farming full-time since 2019,” said Annie Forsthoefel, a native of Ohio who moved to Black Mountain from Portland two years ago. “Growing up, we lived on three acres and we were subsistence farmers. We grew, canned and froze everything.”
Annie’s Farm, which operates in Black Mountain, grows a diverse range of produce, including bok choy, White Russian kale and wasabina mustard greens. Photo by Fred McCormick
She was keen to preserve her farming practice when she moved into her current home, but maintained realistic expectations.
“Someone like me doesn’t make much money growing food, because our culture tells us food should be cheap,” Forsthoefel said. “Our society doesn’t really consider the depth of what it takes to maintain a healthy ecosystem.”
That worldview, she added, makes it difficult for small farms to succeed, but the connections created through the Farmers Alliance help make it possible for local growers to pursue their passion.
“They pay you a fair price, which allows me to cover the cost of potting soil, seeds and everything I need to operate,” Forsthoefel said.
The result yields an impressive bounty of diverse produce that is regularly featured in Bounty & Soul’s Produce to the People markets. The organic crops around Annie’s Farm represent a vast range of diverse foods, including Italian chicories, Ruben’s red romaine lettuce, wasabina mustard greens and White Russian kale.
“Farmers Alliance is awesome, and Claudie is amazing in her role,” Forsthoefel said. “I can tell her I have six heads of bok choy, and she’ll take them. That support is so important for the wide range of small farms in this area.”
‘We need to show up for farmers’
It’s impossible to predict what the future will hold for the global system most rely upon for their food, but one thing is certain, according to Casparian.
“We need to show up for our farmers,” she said. “Whether that’s volunteering to help clear land, dig ditches or whatever, keeping them going is absolutely essential to everyone’s access to nutritious food.”
Education is another significant piece of the puzzle, she continued.
“That’s something else we’re focusing on through Farmers Alliance, by bringing kids and young adults out to experience their local food system and show them what farmers do,” Casparian said. “That’s really exciting because so many people these days don’t necessarily value fresh food, so understanding where it comes from and what goes into bringing it to your table is absolutely essential.”
Supporting local growers is especially crucial in WNC, where overdevelopment and inflation are among numerous obstacles for farms of all sizes, according to Babineaux.
“We truly believe it’s important to address these challenges, because not only does it help farmers, it helps our entire community,” she said. “Each year, there are farms that realize they just can’t make it anymore and that’s really a loss for everyone. We need to give them the economic stability they need to grow healthy food right here in the mountains.”