Forty years ago, Cooperative Extension at North Carolina A&T State University introduced a week to recognize small-scale farmers – including those with limited resources and in small communities – and to educate the public about their critical contributions to the state’s agricultural economy.
Today, Small Farms Week is still going strong, honoring farmers for their innovative and successful agriculture practices and helping stakeholders, students and the general public understand that small farms are the backbone of the state’s $111 billion agricultural economy. Cooperative Extension at N.C. A&T is a key partner in this agricultural equation, working with small-scale producers, offering knowledge, practical advice, and educational programs.
The 40th annual Small Farms Week will be held March 22 – 26, 2026, with the theme “Deep Roots, Strong Future: 40 Years of Small Farm Impact.” Events will include workshops, hands-on demonstrations, and the naming of the 2026 Small Farmers of the Year, with an emphasis on the crucial role of small-scale producers and their impact on communities since Small Farms Week began in 1985.
“One of the reasons we launched Small Farms Week was to give small farmers and small-scale producers recognition for their excellence and the hard work they do to enable families to put fresh, healthy food on their tables,” said M. Ray McKinnie, Ph.D., Extension administrator and associate dean in the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences.
“Forty years later, it’s more important than ever to shine a light on our small farmers as they deal with the financial, environmental, intellectual and emotional realities of producing food and fiber in a world where change is constant. Small Farms Week gives these growers opportunities to learn, network with their peers and Extension staff, and show their community members and this state the day-to-day realities of life on a small farm.”
Small Farms Week 2026 will begin with a kickoff event in Granville County, home of the 2025 Small Farmers of the Year, Elvin and Madeline Eaton of Fairport Farms in Oxford. The Eatons started growing produce and microgreens as a retirement venture in the Kerr-Tar region, which includes some of North Carolina’s most food-insecure communities. The couple is a major contributor to food donation programs at the Granville Veterans’ Life Center and to the Farm to Fridge Program, a collaboration between NC Cooperative Extension and the library system that allows farmers to stock refrigerators with surplus produce that people can pick up freely as needed.
In 2026, the Small Farmer of the Year Award program will expand to include winners from the East, West and Urban regions of the state. All the winners will be honored at the Small Farms Week dinner on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, at the N.C. A&T Alumni Events Center. Giselle Thomas, an Emmy award-winning journalist with WFMY TV, will serve as emcee for the dinner awards reception. The dinner replaces the traditional mid-week Small Farms lunch, during which the Small Farmer of the Year winner was named.
Tuesday and Wednesday will also include educational programs and networking opportunities at the University Farm Pavilion, 3020 McConnell Rd. Educational programs will address pressing issues, such as building risk-ready farms, building relationships to feed children and families in need, and innovative livestock strategies for a changing agricultural landscape.
Programs will offer plenty of interaction and chances to learn from others, including a Ted Talk-style lunch, where farmers and community partners will share challenges and success stories, a “speed station” peer-learning event where farmers rotate among tables hosted by specialists, field staff and researchers, and a networking-style workshop that offers resources for farmers, from business development loans to Extension educational materials to tools for physical, social and emotional health.
“Hurricane Helene did more than flood farmers’ fields; it wiped out entire communities and eliminated ways of life,” said McKinnie. “Farming is a passion, not just a job, and as Extension professionals, we must understand what that means and offer assistance and relief as more severe weather events threaten our farms and ways of life.”
Most Small Farms Week events are free and open to the public. A registration form and a full schedule of events will be posted on the Small Farms Week website in early 2026. Visit the site for updates and more information.
