CULTIVATING CONNECTIONS

Growing Local SC is focused on building a network of organizations and individuals to support South Carolina in getting food from farms and gardens to the table. The goal of the project is to create a cross-sector local food system network aspiring to cultivate a thriving, equitable, inclusive, resilient, and just food economy providing access to healthy food for all. 

About

Growing Local SC | Food System Network

Growing Local SC is focused on building a network that supports South Carolina in getting food from farms and gardens to the table. The network is designed to be reflective of South Carolina's local food system which is a complex web of activities involving the production, processing, transport, and consumption of food.

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Growing Local SC is a network focused on facilitating collaboration between organizations and individuals actively engaged in supporting South Carolina's Food System. The Network will 1) connect and cultivate South Carolina’s local food economy, 2) develop a plan centered on addressing systemic inequities in the state’s food system, 3) catalyze action to address farmland loss, 4) increase capacity of the local food system, and 5) refine metrics for measuring partnerships.

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Necesita ayuda en Español? Email gespinosa@centralmidlands.org 

This project is supported by funds from the 2021 USDA Regional Food System Partnership Grant

Leadership

The project is administered by Wholespire, governed by the South Carolina Food Policy Council, executed and evaluated by contracted project managers (Nikki Seibert Kelley and Alison Pierce), and supported by partners as follows: the SC Department of Agriculture providing financial, programmatic (ACRE), and marketing support; UofSC School of Public Health providing administrative, stakeholder, and food council support; the Rural Resource Coalition as an organizer for gatherings, coordinator of the Local Food Subcommittee, facilitating a farmland working group, and providing engagement to indigenous communities; Bonita Global providing outreach to African American communities; Alianza Latina of the Midlands providing outreach to Latina communities; SC Food Hub Network expanding mid-tier value chains; and SC State University Small Business Development Center and Carolina Farm Stewardship Association providing technical assistance to food and farming businesses. Check out the leadership team profiles below. 

The activities of the network are guided by input gathered at annual meetings and through several stakeholder engagement mechanisms designed to elevate minority voices including the general membership of the South Carolina Food Policy Council and it's committees (interested individuals and organizations are encouraged to apply). The project prioritizes strategies to fill food systems gaps, meet stakeholder needs, and facilitate market opportunities and food access solutions.

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Please note the organizations and individuals listed represent the leadership structure built into the grant but the project is committed to continuously expanding the network leadership to include many other food system organizations.

The Structure

Bonita Clemons

Bonita Global LLC

Carrie Draper

UofSC School of Public Health

Alissa Duncan

 PAL: Play. Advocate. Live Well! | SC Food Policy Council Board Chair

Guillermo Espinosa

Central Midlands Council of Government | Alianza Latina of the Midlands | SC Food Policy Council

Zach Herrnstadt

UofSC School of Public Health

Phillip Ford

Wholespire | SC Food Policy Council

Jim Johnson

SCSU Small Business Development Center Orangeburg | Midlands Local Food Collaborative

Ken Harvin

SC Association of Community Economic Development | Rural Resource Coalition | SC Food Policy Council

Nikki Seibert Kelley

Growing Local SC Network Director
| Wit Meets Grit

Matt Kneece

Carolina Farm Stewardship Association | SC Food Policy Council

Alison Pierce

SC Food Hub Network Coordinator

Meg Stanley

Wholespire

Miko Pickett

Pick 42 Foundation | SC Food Policy Council Board Vice Chair

Kyle Player

SC Department of Agriculture ACRE Program | SC Food Policy Council Board Member

Ashley Page Bookhart

UofSC School of Public Health

Gregory Sprouse

Central Midlands Council of Government

Brian Wheat

SCSU Small Business Development Center

Growing Local SC builds off of a variety of other collaborations and projects, several of which are listed below.

SC Food Policy council

The SC Food Policy Council strives to advance the production and consumption of healthy foods in South Carolina through education and strategic policy planning. Anyone interested in Food Systems in SC can join as a member for free to stay up to date on Growing Local SC and more.

SC Food Hub Network

A group of established food hubs in SC passionate about cultivating a relationship based food system that provides local farmers with personalized resources and markets while ensuring customers are able to secure source identified food traced from harvest to market.

SC Farmer resource guide

The South Carolina Farmer Resource Guide exists to help farmers in South Carolina find the information, resources, and services necessary to operate their businesses.

SC Local Food System Roadmap

The SC Local Food System Road Map project developed as a tool to help those working in the state’s food system to understand how the state’s food system is changing and know what, where, when, who, and how food is (or is not) getting from “A” to “B”.