A Halifax County farmer received a NC AgVentures Grant, a grant program aimed at supporting family farms. The Fitts family is among 68 recipients earning grants between $2,000 and $10,000 from the NC AgVentures Farm Grant Program.
The funding for the competitive grant is provided through the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission and is administered by N.C. Cooperative Extension. The grants are awarded for agricultural project ideas aimed at helping family farms increase their capacity. The Fitts own a cow/calf operation and sell weaned, vaccinated calves. With funding from this grant, the farm will be able to update working facilities to safely and efficiently vaccinate their cattle by installing a permanent head chute. In addition, they plan to retain calves to feed out to sell as freezer beef.
The North Carolina General Assembly created the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund
Commission (TTFC) in 2000 to lessen the financial impact on farmers and tobacco-related businesses caused by the sharp decline of tobacco in the agricultural economy. Through their programs, the TTFC supports local markets, funds training for new jobs, promotes NorthCarolina products, and makes farms safer.
Cooperative Extension is an educational partnership of the state’s two land-grant universities, North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T State University, county governments and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA). Its mission is to extend research-based knowledge to all North Carolinians, helping them transform science into everyday solutions that improve their lives and grow our state.

Read more at: https://agventures.ces.ncsu.edu/grant-program/