ROWAN COUNTY, N.C. -- A new website in North Carolina is connecting meat farmers and consumers.

MeatSuite, created by Cornell Cooperative Extension Agriculture Educators, was created for consumers in New York for bulk sales of meat.

The website launched a version for North Carolina, thanks to a 2018 United States Department of Agriculture grant the N.C. Choices Program at N.C. State University received.

Technical Services Coordinator for N.C. Choices Program at N.C. State University and Wild Turkey Farms LLC Owner Lee Menius said before the COVID-19 pandemic, they planned to spend the first part of the year building farmer profiles before they launched the website in July.

However, the increase demand for meat and the postponement of opening day for farmers markets in the state, prompted them to roll out the website earlier.

“Finding that a lot of farmers were experiencing a flood of consumer interest in buying this and you coupled this with grocery stores being out of the meat supplies...we decided to launch it early in order to help our farmers connect with consumers," Menius said.

On Sunday, the website provided information for 55 farms across the state, listing contact information for farmers and types of meat they sell.

Consumers can search for farms near their homes and contact farmers about options for pickup and delivery.

All the farmers on the site sell products in bulk. However, some of them have individual cuts of meat for sale.

Jessica Evans who owns Evans Family Farm in Rowan County, signed up for MeatSuite.

Evans decided to sign up for MeatSuite to help people find local food.

“It’s a match made between a farmer and someone searching for local food," Evans said.

If you are a farmer interested in signing up, you can do it for free at Meatsuite.com.