Turnrow Appalachian Farm Collective
Although the 33-6-3 workweek and the triple bottom line of people , planet and profit run through every Coalfield Development plan , the partner network and program organization evolve to meet the region ’ s needs . Such was the case with Refresh Appalachia , Coalfield ’ s social enterprise to grow and support agriculture within the region .
“ During a five-year period , we experimented a lot to see what we could do to infuse and strengthen the agricultural economy ,” says Adam Hudson , former director of Refresh Appalachia and current Coalfield Development program development director . “ We worked a lot with displaced coal miners and beginning farmers , and we realized there was a market gap , as well as a grower gap . Not only were there not enough producers , there was not enough access to market .”
Refresh began in 2015 in Lincoln , Mingo and Wayne counties and worked with a variety of partners to create a regional food network . In 2017 , Refresh and Sprouting Farms , a nonprofit agricultural center and farm in Summers County , ran their own food hubs and jointly grossed more than $ 200,000 . Today , Sprouting Farms and Refresh have joined forces as Turnrow Appalachian Farm Collective , a collaborative of food hubs that spans the region .
The on-the-job training crews , the farms and Turnrow all have integral parts to play to flip the region ’ s focus from fossil fuels to sustainable farming . The training piece of the initiative has been pulled back into Coalfield Development .
“ On the people or social side , we have our crew members
and trainees , as well as the outreach we do with local farmers and producers ,” says Hudson . “ Then the product is sold , and that profit sustains the enterprise . Environmentally , we practice sustainable agriculture and , in many cases , organic or nearly organic agriculture .”
Although the Refresh enterprise has been disassembled and reassigned , the partnerships stay strong . Some of Refresh ’ s partners include Unlimited Future , Inc ., a business planning and job prep firm ; Appalachian Sustainable Development ; and its food hub Appalachian Harvest out of Virginia .
“ We have worked with all the local colleges and universities at some point in time ,” says Hudson . “ Even though we have restructured , we will stay very much involved in regional system development .” •
Photo by Elice Hunley .
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