A few years ago, TN Local Food’s Farmer Relief Fund was born out of a natural disaster that impacted farmers across the region. High winds destroyed and damaged essential infrastructure that farmers relied on, immediately disrupting their farms and businesses and pulling them away from their essential work of growing food.

A farmer and board member at the time, Caroline Hutchens, wasted no time galvanizing our team around this catastrophe. We quickly launched a fundraiser and established a committee to review and distribute relief funds. Within a month, thanks to the generosity of our community, we raised and distributed more than $18,000 to local farmers.

Since that 2023 disaster, we’ve worked hard to strengthen the Farmer Relief Fund to ensure our process is effective and truly meets the needs of Tennessee farmers. We clarified eligibility, standardized award amounts, and developed a more robust scoring system. We’ve also grown our review team and are incredibly grateful for the farmers and partners who volunteer their time to help steward this work.

What changed everything for this program was the monthly contribution pledged by Farmers Friend, LLC a couple of years ago. Their consistent support allows us to confidently award worthy applications, knowing the fund will be replenished each month. Because of their commitment, we’re able to act strategically instead of reactively.

In February, Winter Storm Fern brought a new level of historic destruction across the region. We immediately received nine applications from farmers who shared devastating stories and needed support at a critical moment as the busy spring season approached.

Winter Storm Fern damage at Hoff the Grid Meat Co.

Our team debated whether we should completely drain the fund in order to support every deserving applicant. We could have done that—but how many more farmers might need help in the months ahead?

Farming is a genuine labor of love. Very few farmers growing vegetables are in it for the money. If we want access to healthy, local food, we need farmers to keep farming. Our desire to find a way to support all of these farmers was strong.

That’s when Farm Aid—the nonprofit organization founded by Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp to support family farms—stepped in with a generous $5,000 contribution to the Farmer Relief Fund. These funds directly supported applications related to Storm Fern. What a gift!

One thing we deeply admire about Farm Aid is their commitment to working with community organizations like TN Local Food across the country. Over the past couple of years, Farm Aid has supported our work not only financially but by connecting us with other organizations operating similar relief funds. Those connections proved invaluable as we strengthened our operating procedures to ensure integrity, fairness, and equity remain at the core of our process.

Thanks to Farm Aid’s partnership, our relief fund now operates more effectively—and we were able to award every eligible application following Storm Fern.

Winter Storm Fern damage at Clean Genes Farm.

We have big dreams for our “little fund that could.” Up to this point, outreach and promotion for the Farmer Relief Fund has been limited—partly by intention. While we receive individual contributions periodically, Farmers Friend, LLC has carried the program with their steady monthly support.

But if we want farmers across Tennessee to know this resource exists, the fund needs to be strengthened by a broader and more diverse base of supporters. We need local businesses, corporations, and community members to invest in this fund so that when ten deserving applications arrive at once, we can confidently award them all.

Local farmers using regenerative practices are healing the planet and feeding their communities. Yet the essential work they do rarely produces large financial returns, leaving farmers vulnerable when disasters strike.

Whether you are an individual or a business, we would be truly honored to have your support of this critical fund—one that helps farmers recover during their most difficult moments and return to the work that sustains us all.

Become a one-time or sustaining monthly donor of the Farmer Relief Fund

Support This Work

The Farmer Relief Fund is made possible by these generous supporters: