Orange incubator's focus is farmers

State, county and academic officials are pooling resources at the Breeze farm to encourage new agricultural businesses

HILLSBOROUGH -- New farmers may soon be hatching in Orange County, thanks to an incubator being planned to boost organic and sustainable agriculture in the Piedmont.

Representatives of the county, N.C. State University and state Cooperative Extension are working to bring the incubator to a 168-acre farm donated to NCSU's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences by Col. William H. Breeze, an alumnus and Orange County native.

The farm, located where Walnut Grove Church Road meets Schley Road in the Hurdle Mills community of northern Orange, was dedicated in the spring as the W.C. Breeze Family Farm Agricultural Extension and Research Facility. Breeze also donated a $820,000 trust fund to support agricultural, research and extension activities on the farm.

"The idea of a sort of agro-business incubator, it is a new idea," said Donald Cobb, the Cooperative Extension's North Central District director.

"We have research across the state, but I'm not sure that we've ever had interest from county government in tying in," he said. "We're delighted that Orange County folks have an interest in this."

Some of the property could be used for research on alternative crops such as small fruits and vegetables. Another area might be devoted to soil experiments related to septic systems for urban development, Cobb said.

"We do not have a location in the Piedmont area of the state where we have done any research on things like that," he added.

Orange County put together a three-page proposal this summer of ideas to help farmers grow and sell locally.

The county is also talking about building an industrial-size kitchen where local growers could preserve their foods; that way, they could sell to customers even when produce isn't in season.

Barry Jacobs, chairman of the Orange County Board of Commissioners, said elected officials in Durham and Alamance counties have asked for more information on the plans. Orange is also gauging interest in Person, Caswell and Chatham counties.

Weaver Street Market and Whole Foods Market have each promised $1,000 to fund a feasibility study for the processing center.

"We're trying to deal with issues that agriculture has in an urbanizing county, and this is the one we live in," Jacobs said. "But we think a lot of the issues and the tools have applications throughout the state -- like trying to link farmers to the local economy, like conservation easements as a way for farmers to capitalize on their land without having to sell it, like easing the transition from tobacco to other crops."

Orange County is also proposing that an agro-business incubator serve immigrants who come from a farming background and want to farm locally.

In collaboration with El Centro Latino and other nonprofit organizations, Orange County held a focus group over the summer to measure interest in the Hispanic community.

"We had about 15 people that ... were very, very interested in participating in the program," said Ben Balderas, El Centro's executive director. "Since then, we've received calls from them."

The county also sought out interest in the local Asian immigrant population through listservs and a Chinese newspaper. Eleven Chinese immigrants responded, said Milan Pham, the county's human rights and relations director, who headed that effort.

"They were interested in mostly getting some sort of government assistance to start farming, because it's very expensive to start," Pham said.

Jacobs hopes for a presentation at Orange County's annual agricultural summit early next year. "I think that it would be nice to think we could get something started in the spring," he said.