EDGECOMBE COUNTY, N.C. — A Black farming incubator is working to connect underrepresented communities with agriculture.
What You Need To Know
While the need for agriculture and access to fresh food has grown in our economy, the number of black farmers has decreased
That's why nonprofit, Freedom Org wants to bring equity back to the agriculture industry
Co-founder, Kendrick Ransome says the challenges of farming sometimes steer people away from the agriculture lifestyle completely
Kendrick Ransome runs Golden Organic Farm in Pinetops. His great-grandfather was the last person in his family who worked this land
"I had it, and I realized that that was a privilege that I had to take advantage of," Ransome said.
But he wanted to dig deeper into his roots, so he co-founded Freedom Org. The nonprofit wants to help some communities get connected with agriculture.
"A lot of people are becoming more conscious of where their food comes from and the nutritional values of their food," Ransome said. "To see my kids and other kids in our community choose fruits and vegetables more over fruits and candy, just shows us where we are shifting as a people."
Ransome says some of the challenges people face when getting started are finding funding, knowing how to get connected with organic produce and obtaining farm equipment.
And sometimes the challenges of farming steer people away from pursuing this lifestyle completely and because of that, diversity in farming has decreased.
According to McKinsey and Company, today 1.4% of farmers identify as Black or mixed race, as compared to about 14% 100 years ago.
That's why Ransome hopes Freedom Org can bring equity and access back to this industry.
"It's really important we focus on us because for one we are already being dominated in this industry," Ransome said.
The nonprofit is working to offer workshops and equipment-sharing programs for people looking to get into the agriculture industry.