“The goal of Bedford Grown is to help fuel the local economy and foster a sense of pride in the products from the area. The county is sending letters to farmers and operations informing them of the effort. There is no fee to participate, said Blido, and she and Baker will distribute stickers with the logos to residents. “It’s a popular thing to buy local right now, and we are capitalizing on that through this program because people want to know that their product was raised locally or at least regionally so that they are keeping their dollar in the community,” she said. Any agricultural producer can take advantage of the program, Baker said, as long as the product is from Bedford County. The effort is not just intended for large operations. Blido said, “We’ve got farm stands all the way down our country roads” that could benefit. The hope is to yield dollars from local spenders as well. A study from the Virginia Cooperative Extension shows if each household in Bedford County were to invest $10 into local food or farm-based products, the end result would be $15 million. Bill Mayo and his wife started Shiloh Church Muscadines nearly three years ago and already are using the Bedford Grown logo. The farm produces salads and tomatoes, but the flagship product is muscadines. The nearest muscadine producers are in Virginia Beach and Winston-Salem, N.C., Mayo said, so he sees the local label as a way to help expand the reach of his nearly nine acres. He believes as companies genetically modify food, people are turning back to produce grown in their areas to eat healthier. The local food movement can make the area industry more sustainable, he said.”(Read the full story at NewsAdvance.com) To apply for the Bedford Grown branding program go: here (PDF)]]>
