Appalachian Harvest Network

About a decade ago Anthony assembled a few local growers and environmentalists who had been fighting over whether to preserve land or use it for economic growth. “A small group got together for dialogue, saying ‘we’re fighting each other and both losing out: the environment is deteriorating and we’re losing good jobs.’ After initial dialogue, we broadened the group, reaching out to state and local economic agencies, farmers and loggers, and traditional economic developers. Then we tried to meld with community development and environmental activists. From the beginning, we were focused on action and demonstration projects, not words and conceptualizations.”

In 1995, Appalachian Sustainable Development opened its doors as a nonprofit with small pilot projects that demonstrated horse logging and solar kilns. It began to cultivate a network of a few small, regional growers, mostly Amish and “back to the land” uncertified organic growers. They ran a small community supported agriculture (CSA) subscription service—where community members purchased monthly “shares” of farmers’ produce—and also sold some of the produce directly to restaurants.

Work on the AHN began in the year 2000. The idea was to expand the organization’s overall network with more local growers, including those looking to move out of tobacco. One of the participating farmers lent extra barn space for the distribution center. The goals then, in Anthony’s words, were to “plan and pool product to meet demand,” and “to improve their quality control. We thought we knew enough on these two fronts to move forward.” With three supermarket buyers and barely a dozen farmers, ASN started making sales in 2001.

Over the next seven years, AHN has steadily expanded its universe of participating growers and buyers. It overhauled and retrofitted the loaned barn to make it a certified organic packing facility. In May 2007 ASD suffered a significant setback when the barn housing AHN’s packing facility burned to the ground. AHN temporarily relocated to another facility for the 2007 season. With money from the insurance settlement, local support, and the Virginia Tobacco Commission, ASD was able to build a new, larger, and better designed facility in time for the 2008 season. This 15,000 square foot building has 3,200 square feet of cooler space and several grading lines designated for different types of produce.