Feed & Seed Co. has been offering fresh, locally sourced food in the Judson Mill neighborhood since 2022, by way of its Green Market and Café. But the 18,000-square-foot Food Innovation Hub is much more than a fun place to shop and have lunch. The nonprofit provides infrastructure to support local farmers while improving access to healthy, affordable food.
Feed & Seed grew out of co-founder and board chair Mary Hipp’s 2012 Liberty Fellowship project, which focused on helping Greenville County Schools work with more local food producers.
“Farmers in the district didn’t have networks to get their food to end users,” Hipp said. “We began creating ways to connect them with institutions — schools, hospitals, universities and assisted living facilities — a target market that was not being supplied by local farmers.”
In 2023, the Community Foundation of Greenville awarded a Capacity Building Grant to purchase new technology used by Feed and Seed employees.
Feed & Seed works with partners in Pickens, Oconee and Abbeville counties to provide FoodShare boxes to underserved communities through federal grants. Volunteers pack the boxes, which can be purchased using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funds. SNAP benefits can also be used to purchase food in the Green Market, and their value is quadrupled on purchases of produce through the state’s Healthy Bucks program.
Feed & Seed also partners with the USDA on the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, or LFPA, which provides funding to purchase products from local farmers and donate them to people in need. Through a farm-to-school processing program, the nonprofit provides local produce served to students in Pickens County and Spartanburg County School District 6.
The Food Innovation Hub includes a processing facility where food is washed and cut, then dehydrated, and freeze-dried or flash-frozen to minimize waste.
“We’re able to process B-grade produce, providing an additional revenue stream for farmers that they haven’t had for the last two decades,” Hipp said. “For example, last year’s sweet potato crop did well, but some were too big, or not grocery-store pretty. We peeled them and made them into sweet potato fries for institutional sales like Clemson University and to put in LFPA boxes.”
Feed & Seed’s commissary kitchen, along with its cold and dry storage areas, are available for lease by small businesses to meet seasonal needs and facilitate growth. Adam Sturm, director of operations, said local bakeries rent freezer space around the holidays and other vendors use it for ice cream in the summer.
“It’s an opportunity for local makers to use facilities and storage at an affordable cost, and it provides an additional source of revenue to cover our expenses,” Sturm said.
While grants like the LFPA cover costs for specific programs, operational costs for the facility, employee salaries, supplies and other costs associated with food production and distribution are separate. Feed & Seed relies on grants and the generosity of the community to continue its work.
“Shopping at the Green Market and eating at the café are great ways for the community to support our mission,” Sturm said. “By coming to the market or buying a sandwich, you’re increasing access to nourishing food and a sustainable food system.”
For more information, visit feedandseedsc.com.
