From cotton mill to co-op: the rise of a local food culture in Carrboro, North Carolina

Urban Farm DB summary

In Carrboro, North Carolina, a group of citizens with progressive values has created a thriving market community for locally produced food over the last thirty years, leading to the rise of a local food culture. Farmers' markets, cooperative groceries, home and community gardens, urban chickens, and locally-focused restaurants play a vital role in the community's identity and its social, political, and economic activities. This project illuminates the complex ties (urban/rural, liberal/conservative, etc.) that facilitated the local food segment of Carrboro's broader economy and investigates local definitions of place, group, taste, and tradition.