Jimmy Tosh sells a lot of pigs. He is owner and CEO of Tosh Farms, Tosh Pork, and Bacon By Gosh, in Henry County, Tennessee, and has 84 contracted barns in the region where farmers grow pigs for his products. On a recent July day, Tosh craned over some 1,200 piglets and reflected […]
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Woman Leaves Puerto Rico to Learn Farming in West Virginia
It was April and snowing when Aura Broida Fontánez came to West Virginia, and there were no leaves on the trees. It reminded her of the trees in Puerto Rico, when the leaves were swept away by Hurricane Maria. Months after the hurricane, Broida arrived as an intern at Harmony […]
Read MoreBack To The Garden: How Green Thumbs Help With Addiction Recovery
Meredith Jensen is doing some gardening on a sunny day in a secluded part of Athens, Ohio. “I’m working on our pollinator garden beds,” she said. “Which are a bunch of fun flowers that’ll help attract butterflies, bumble bees, you name it.” Her partner Jamie Betit pushes a full wheel […]
Read MoreThe Geography of Food Stamps
With the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in the news because of proposed cuts, we took another look at the data. The bottom line: Rural areas cluster near the top of counties that are most reliant on SNAP. Rural counties and small metropolitan areas crowd the top of the list of […]
Read MoreChanges to SNAP Threaten Food Security in Western North Carolina — ‘What Happened to That American Dream Again?’
The screen door slams, punctuating our conversation as a couple navigates a sleeping baby, undisturbed and still in her car seat, through the entryway of the Swannanoa Valley Christian Ministry headquarters in Black Mountain, North Carolina. The shelter provides relief in myriad ways for folks who find themselves in a […]
Read MoreA Conversation with Appalachian Chef-Journalist Mike Costello
Jesse Wright, news director at West Virginia Public Broadcasting, sat down with Mike Costello, food editor at 100 Days in Appalachia, Monday morning for WVPB’s West Virginia Morning program. The two discussed Costello’s recent appearance on CNN’s Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown Sunday, as well as Costello’s upcoming new online food […]
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