Simply Natural Dairy Farm, LLC

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Location:

Ayden, NC

County:

Greene

Description:

Purchase of Jersey milking cows, milking equipment, fencing, and miscellaneous equipment

Total Project Costs:

$450,000 (NCIF $250,000)

People:

Neil Moye grew up in Greene County, North Carolina, and began farming directly out of high school in 1986 with an $80,000 loan from a local bank cosigned by his father, who ran the local grocery store in the Ayden community. Today, Moye Farms encompasses more than 500 acres of land owned or leased to grow tobacco, corn, cotton, soybeans, wheat and hay. In 2005, he began raising hogs for Murphy-Brown LLC as part of that company’s antibiotic-free feed program, and he also raises turkeys.

Simply Natural Dairy Farm is further testament to Moye’s willingness to innovate and diversify beyond tobacco production. Using his tobacco settlement payments and a loan from NCIF, in 2009 Moye launched the dairy operations, which he hopes will benefit the land, the local community and the health-conscious consumer. With the goal of beginning to milk in 2011, he has purchased and grown out a herd of 70 Jersey calves, built a milking parlor, transitioned acreage on his farm to organic grain production, and fenced in pasture for the herd. He plans to sell his organic milk and grain through Organic Valley, a 20-year-old farmer-owned cooperative that is a leading source of organic milk and dairy products in the United States. Moye hopes
to expand his herd to 150 cows by 2015.

Role of NCIF:

In 2009, a Chatham County Cooperative Extension agent specializing in dairy operations referred the Natural Capital Investment Fund to Moye. NCIF used funds provided by the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to fund the majority of its $250,000 loan to Simply Natural Dairy Farm. The Commission’s grant to NCIF is intended to fund tobacco farmers seeking to diversify into sustainable agricultural practices.

Impact:

The Southeast is a net importer of organic milk, so Simply Natural The Southeast is a net importer of organic milk, so Simply Natural Dairy Farm will be a welcome source of locally produced milk that is free of antibiotics and growth hormones. Moye‘s organic grain production eliminates the use of herbicides and more than 50,000 pounds of synthetic fertilizer annually. The new milking operations will add two jobs and bring welcome income to economically distressed Greene County.

Company website:

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