Here at Cane Creek Asparagus & Company we have always been concerned about farmland preservation. Glenda is a fourth- or seventh-generation USA farm girl depending on which Branch of her Family Tree one follows. She was raised on a family farm with the philosophy that it is up to each farming generation to do the most they can do to conserve the land and to preserve the soil for the next generation.
We have enrolled our Fairview farm in the Buncombe Country Farmland Preservation Program. This is a voluntary preservation and protection of farmlands program whereby a landowner agrees to prohibit non-farm use or development of his land in Buncombe County. This was one of the first such preservation programs in the State of North Carolina! And, yes, the butterfly below on the sign is REAL!
Since its inception, we have partnered with the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project which is based in Asheville, North Carolina. ASAP is a nonprofit organization with the goals of increasing access to local foods, preserving the values of rural communities, protecting farmlands and the natural beauty of our mountains, encouraging sustainable farming practices, and strengthening the local economy. Their most visible projects include the Local Food Thousands of miles fresher! bumper stickers, the free Local Food Guide which is a directory of local farms in the Southern Appalachians, and the Appalachian Grown producer certification which is seen in local grocery stores and markets.
Cane Creek Asparagus & Company is a member of the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association. The mission of this nonprofit organization is to promote local and organic agriculture in the Carolinas by inspiring, educating and organizing farmers and consumers. Their vision is a regional, sustainable food system that is good for the farmer, the consumer and the land.
We have partnered with Mountain Valleys Resource Conservation and Development. Mountain Valleys RC&D is governed by a twenty-two member volunteer Board of Directors representing each of the eight counties in the WNC service region. RC&D helps people protect and develop their economic, natural, and social resources in ways that improve the area’s economy, environment, and the quality of life for all citizens of the community.
Our family farm, Cane Creek Asparagus & Company, is a participant in the Farm Prosperity Project which is working to preserve North Carolina Mountain Farmland. This project identifies crops and farmland preservation methods that help support sustainable farmland in our region. The project area includes Madison, Buncombe, Henderson, Transylvania, and Haywood counties.
Cane Creek Asparagus & Company is a member of the Fairview Business Association. FBA members are business owners living or doing business within the Fairview, North Carolina community. Emphasis is placed on buying locally to support one another and help provide an ongoing thriving local community.
In our opinion, the use of the word organic often is used as a mere marketing tool; whereas, the word sustainable applies to the farmer’s entire approach of interacting with the environment and the land and all contained thereon. As sustainable farmers, Robert and I take seriously our commitment to the land, our community, and the environment. We are farming vegetables for our CSA Shareholders in Asheville, NC and the surrounding area in a manner which may not be certified organic, but in a manner using organic inputs. Preservation is all about future generations, after all.
Cane Creek Asparagus & Company CSA 