www.NCFarmFresh.com

Interest in buying locally grown fruits, vegetables and meats continues to grow as consumers look to support local growers and find foods that haven’t traveled very far from the field to the table. To tap into this growing trend, the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is ramping up its efforts to help shoppers find locally grown farm products in their area through promotions and updates of the department’s NCFarmFresh.com Web site. The Web site is as a tool where consumers can search for retail farms, roadside stands, farmers markets, community-supported agriculture operations, nurseries, retail garden centers and more! Listings can be searched by the type of commodity being sold, by county or by region. “Farmers who market their products directly to consumers are encouraged to sign up now so they won’t miss this marketing opportunity,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “this will be a simple and easy way for farmers to promote their products and potentially increase their sales. Best of all, it is free and easy to do.”

Farmers can register their farms by logging on to NCFarmFresh.com and following the links on the home page. They may also contact NCDA&CS at (919) 733-7887 for more information or assistance.