From CEFS:
More than 30 years
of sustainable
agriculture work in
North Carolina and
across the world

Dr. John M. O’Sullivan
CEFS
Retired Director
(NCA&TSU)
INIA- Uruguay
May 11, 2015
CIAT
Cali, Colombia
May 16, 2016
josullivan5025@gmail.com

North Carolina’s Center for Environmental
Farming Systems
• Partnership initiated
in 1994
 NCSU
 NCA&T SU
 NCDA &CS
www.cefs.ncsu.edu
Mission: To develop and promote agricultural systems that
protect the environment, enhance rural and urban communities,
and provide economic opportunities in North Carolina and
beyond

A Journey from 1990- 2015

Our Approach: Our Strategic Plan
• Provide a research base to facilitate
transition to more economically viable
systems of production.
• Demonstration and training site for
farmers, extension agents, educators,
students, and others.
• Training young people through farm
apprentice program, internship program,
and other venues.
• Developing a Sustainable Local Food
Economy. Connecting industries,
business opportunities, consumers,
farmers for a healthy and justice food
system.

Program Elements
• Large Scale Field Units
• Research on & off station
• Academic and other
educational programming
• Extension and Outreach
• Local and Community-
based Food Systems

Essential Elements of the Plan
• Integration of research, academic,
and extension
• Interdisciplinary and Collaborative
• Food System- from beginning to
beginning again
• Farmer, Partner, and Stakeholder
Engagement
• Focus on Sustainability in all
its systemic complexity.

Because of the Changing
Agricultural Landscape
• Changes and long term trends in agriculture
– Crisis of Clean Water
– Process of long term soil degradation because of poor farming
practices
– Climate change and departure from the “norm” in weather
patterns
– Rising age of farmers
– Rural community decline
– Global food needs, corporate investment and profit structure
and market fluctuations
– Consumer interest: local, sustainable, organic
– Public health interest: healthy food, healthy lives.

And what if all that food we are
producing is not good for us and
does not make us healthy?
Should we be investigating to see if
we are making poor food choices in
our production, distribution,
consumption, “waste“ management–
---in our food system?

It is about protecting the future resources
base for humanity’s agriculture anywhere

Clean Water, Healthy Soils, Rivers
and Oceans

Significant Hurdles
• Balance of Infrastructure for present
and future use;
• Distribution issues;
• Safe and Quality Supply;
• Political language of “sound bites”,
boundaries, quick fixes;
• Internet exaggerations and false
information, promises, hype.

A Systemic Challenge
• Present resource-use systems do
not offer hope for future safe and
healthy agricultural and food
systems;
• No matter how good the production
systems we are developing, we have
to address larger issues.
• How do we do that?

CEFS Systems
Research Unit
Organic Forestry Crop/animal BMP Old Field
81 Hectare Long-term Comparison of 5 systems

• Agronomic and horticulture
• Cover crop integration (summer and winter)
• Organic reduced-till
• Critical weed free periods
• Beneficial insect habitat
• Allelopathy
• Systemic induced resistance
• Greenhouse gas and Carbon Sequestration
Example: The CEFS Organic
Research Unit

Critical Issues for Rural
Economic Wellbeing and Small,
Part-time Family Farms
• Off Farm
Employment
Options
• The passing
generation- age,
education, location,
investments
• Present enterprises
• Livestock, and
pasture
management

Purpose: TheDemonstration of Best
The Management Practices
• Record keeping
• Controlled breeding
season
• Multiple, out-of-stream
drinking points
• Herd health practices
• Controlled grazing for
year around use
• Humane animal
handling
• Marketing
opportunities

WEBSITE
Retail and Food Service
FARMERS MARKETS
Markets
Farmers
Processors
…getting sustainable pork to market

Changing Consumer Landscape
• Consumer interest: local, sustainable, organic, fresh
– 70 percent of consumers want to know where their
food comes from and would pay more for locally
grown food if they could find it (packaged facts,
2007)

Rural Economic Growth:
Multiplier effect of local food
systems
• Wallace Center and Business Alliance for
Local Living studied 24 local food
enterprises nationally, and “local food
enterprises as profitable startups that are
key to economic growth and recovery”.
• “Two to four times the income, wealth
and jobs than at an equivalent nonlocal
[global] business {if used at appropriate
job potential}”.

CEFS: Farm to Fork Approach
We work comprehensively across food system sectors

Integrated research
must be the basis of:
• New production systems which
• Need new marketing models
• And new business enterprises
• For more local profitability
• Environmental sustainability
• Broad rural development
• Community engagement
• New partnerships in and beyond
agriculture.

10% Campaign Overview
• Outcome of Communications Working Issues Team
• Funded by Golden Leaf Foundation
• 10% is doable and a place to start (not intimidating!)
for the newly engaged, institutions, restaurants, etc.
• Agriculture is a $3.5 billion endeavor in North
Carolina.
Make the Choice. Make a Difference. Make it Local.

Public Health Interest
 Increasingly, trends
in obesity and
diabetes are being
tied to the current
food system.
 Unequal access and
health disparities
clearly exist.
 Exercise and lifestyle
matter.
 Food choices- good
and bad- are
learned.

Long Term Economic Impacts…
• In the U.S., $147 billion currently spent to
treat obesity, and
• $116 billion to treat diabetes.
• 30 percent of the increase in health care
spending over the past 20 years has been
attributed to the soaring rate of obesity.
• Think about our kids school lunch choices
and the long-term impact on North Carolina
health care costs.

But….
• Lack of coordination
• Piecemeal approach
• Lack of momentum
• No Strategic Plan to move the
state’s Local Food Economy forward
• Funders wanted to know where to
put their money- what would be
successful?

The Farm to Fork Local Foods Initiative..
• Established advisory committee (80+)
• Regional meetings across the state (6)
• Working Issues Teams established (11)
• “Game Changer Ideas developed”
• Sold out Statewide Summit (400+ attendees)
• An active listerv (1000+ subscribers)
• Directory of food system activities (www.ncfoodnet.com)
• Publication of State Action Guide

State Action Guide
• Background and statistics
• Useful facts in making the
case for local foods
• Description of issues
faced
• Prioritized state and local
action items
• NC models

Working Issue Teams
• Formalize the Initiative: Foundations
and Baselines
• Farm-to-School Education and food
• Institutional and Retail Markets
• Public Health & Food Access
Disparities
• Direct Markets
• New and Transitioning Farmer Support

Working Issue Teams
• Community Gardens
• Land Use and Local Government
Initiatives
• Youth and Social Networking
• Consumer Outreach and Marketing
• Processing and other Physical
Infrastructure

Biggest Challenge-Collaboration?
• Find institutions/people who care
• Build the network
• Value the knowledge and skills of all
• Find things that are of mutual benefit
• Make resource expand so that 1+1=
more than 2.
• Focus on Long term Sustainability
however it is
defined with sub-
stance.

CEFS Expanded its Partnerships
with new Stakeholders

Summary of topics for today
• Agricultural Research-
• Outreach-
• Marketing and Social Communication(s)-
• Local Food Systems and Hubs-
• The Health Lens
• Youth- Literacy, Leadership, Careers-
• Community Engagement and Action Research-
• Addressing Structural Racism (within our
organizations, in our proposals and project work
and in the food system- equity, access in all of
system, production, consumption, lifestyle,
management decisions) -