The Organic Agriculture Revitalization Strategy (OARS) is an initiative that is re-envisioning organic food and agriculture – now a nearly $50 billion mainstream market – as an inclusive economic development strategy for revitalizing rural places.
Developed by Croatan Institute and Earthwise Organics with initial support from Organic Valley’s Farmers Advocating for Organics program, OARS convenes regional partners to identify business and economic development opportunities in certified organic value chains and then to mobilize capital to help build resilient rural communities through regenerative agriculture.
The first OARS pilot project focused on a 28-county region on the coastal plain of northeastern North Carolina, and learnings from the pilot are now being leveraged into a new national replication phase, with regional replications being developed around the U.S., in the upper Midwest, on the west coast, in the Heartland, and in other parts of the South.
To learn more about OARS and opportunities for implementation and regional replication in other geographies, follow the link below to the OARS overview. For more information about potentially partnering on OARS, please contact OARS co-founder and senior strategist Josh Humphreys at josh@croataninstitute.org.
This report aims to quantify the current investment landscape surrounding regenerative agriculture and cultivate an understanding of how investors can allocate investments across asset classes to further these efforts.
This webinar explores models to finance resilient food systems and regenerative, organic agriculture across asset classes.
This report tracks their progress, showcases leading examples through case studies, and invites other foundations to come along.
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