N.C. 10% Campaign records $40 million in local food purchases

Media Contact: Teisha Wymore, tlwymore@ncsu.edu or 919.515.0244

In just three years, the N.C. 10% Campaign, which encourages all North Carolinians and businesses to spend 10 percent of their food dollars on locally produced foods, has logged more than $40 million in expenditures. The campaign, which kicked off in July 2010, now counts more than 6,500 individuals and 850 businesses among its supporters.

“Reaching this goal is a testament to the commitment of our partners to source and purchase North Carolina foods whenever possible,” says Teisha Wymore, state coordinator of the N.C. 10% Campaign.

The N.C. 10% Campaign, which began in July 2010, aims to create a local food economy in North Carolina. Supporters sign up on the campaign’s website, nc10percent.com, and record their local foods purchases each week. The campaign’s database records purchases, and allows individuals and business partners to track their progress over time.

The N.C. 10% Campaign is an initiative of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS), a partnership of N.C. State University, N.C. Agricultural & Technical State University and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. CEFS’s mission is to develop and promote food and farming systems that protect the environment, strengthen local communities and provide economic opportunities in North Carolina and beyond. For more information please see www.cefs.ncsu.edu.

The campaign has social media, educational and community-building components as well. The N.C. 10% Campaign has been so successful that other states, including Connecticut, Michigan and South Carolina, are beginning to use it as a model for local food initiatives in their own regions.

Funded by the Golden LEAF Foundation, the N.C. 10% Campaign works with the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service in all 100 North Carolina counties and with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. For more information or to join the campaign, visit nc10percent.com.

-J.J. Richardson