U.S. Department of Agriculture officials recently visited Durham’s Eastern Carolina Organics (ECO) to learn about an emerging business model for distributing regionally grown, mostly organic food to the larger wholesale market. ECO markets and distributes food from farms around the Carolinas and Virginia to restaurants, institutions – including Carolina Dining Services, and retailers. Firsthand Foods, a company which uses a similar wholesale model for the distribution of ethically raised livestock, shares the warehouse space. “There are very few [small] scale producers who are able to access wholesale markets,” said Sandi Kronick, ECO’s chief financial officer. “We give local farmers the strength to help them keep growing.” Read more »
