State campaign , Wal-Mart push homegrown goodness
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
It was hard to miss the 13
foot-tall shopping cart out
side of the Wal-Mart
Supercenter on Kester Mill
Road on Tuesday evening.
The North Carolina
Department of Agriculture
(NCDA) hoped its message
was equally striking.
"It's to get people's atten
tion and we think we did a
pretty good job with that,"
chuckled G.W. Stanley, retail
marketing specialist for the
NCDA.
The mobile cart, which is
powered by a Chevrolet 396
engine, is part of "Got to Be
NC," an ongoing NCDA cam
paign that urges consumers to
obuy local products. The
Winston-Salem visit was part
of an annual awareness tour
that included stops at Wal
Marts in 16 North Carolina
cities.
"It's important to grow it
here in the state and to sup
port our farmers here," com
mented Stanley. "It's all a
method of trying to help keep
<.i *.< r ?
NCDA's G.W. Stanley and
Nat Tunnell
here; I'm really, really proud
of the store here and what
we've been able to accom
plish with the North Carolina
and the local grown prod
ucts," Osborne remarked.
"This year is the first year for
me as grocery manager, but I
actually see the local grown
products and produce coming
through - it's been a tremen
dous growth over
mem on me rarm.
Opportunities
for North Carolina
growers to get in on
the action at Wal
Mart are increasing
greatly. Though the
retail giant is often
accused of snuffing
out opportunities
for other business
people with its hard
to beat prices . Wal
Mart actually has a good
track record of putting the
produce of local farmers on
its shelves.
In fact, the world's largest
retailer reports that its part
nerships with local farmers
have climbed by 50 percent
over the past two years. An
estimated $400 million in
locally grown products is
expected to hit stores across
the U.S. by the end of the
year.
Kester Mill Wal-Mart
Grocery Manager Randy
Osborne said he's seen a big
increase in the amount of
locally grown products enter
ing the store.
?Hit's a huge day fol 8S
Osborne
food's origins if contamina
tion or another problem aris
es. Local food has to travel a
shorter distance from the
farms, to the stores and is
generally fresher than prod
ucts that are shipped from
other parts of the country,
Stanley said.
Buying local is good for
the state's economy, as well.
"The money stays here in
thi? state, it helps our people
locally, helps the state," he
.explained. "Agriculture is
the number one industry in
North Carolina. It's a $68
billion business.
Those kind of numbers,
you want to keep it strong in
North Carolina."
Betty Hindsman happened
this past year for
us."
Local products
ate identified with
special signage
throughout the
store, Osbornt
noted.
Among the ben
efits of purchasing
local produce is the
ability to trace a
Photos by Lay la Farmer
Shopper Betty Hindsman checks out some of the local vendors
outside of Wal-Mart.
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upon the massive display
while out on a routine shop
ping trip. Being "nosy," as
she puts it. Hindsman decid
ed to take a little detour to
check out the North Carolina
products and samples on dis
play outside the store.
"1 think it's a good idea,"
said Hindsman, after munch
ing on a homegrown tomato
sandwich. "The products
taste just as good as the
major manufacturers (and)
the North Carolina economy
needs all the in-house push of
our economy we can get."
For more information
about purchasing local prod
ucts, visit
www.gottobenc.com or
www.goodnessgrows.org.
?I
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