North Carolina Research Campus, Kannapolis

January 27, 2010

N.C. MarketReady Announces Spring Cost Share Cycle for Equipment

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – The North Carolina Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) program, administered by
N.C. MarketReady, is now accepting applications for the spring funding cycle, Equipment Cost Share.
This program is funded by the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to support the development of
value-added agricultural operations, an emerging sector of North Carolina agriculture.

A value-added agricultural product is a raw, agricultural commodity that has been changed in some
manner so that it no longer can be returned to its original state. This change results in increased market
value, allowing the producer to receive a higher price for these value-added products compared to the
original commodity.  Chopped lettuce, fruit jams and stone-ground corn meal are a few examples. “The 
NCVACS guidelines broaden the definition of value-added beyond the traditional scope. It also includes
non-standard production methods (such as organic), physical product segregation (keeping genetically
modified (GM) corn separate from non-GM corn), generating farm-based renewable energy and some
locally produced food products,” said Brittany Whitmire, program coordinator for NCVACS.

The NCVACS program works hand-in-hand with the USDA Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) by
reducing the costs associated with professional services and equipment purchases that are not funded
by the USDA grant. The spring cost share cycle allows value-added producers to apply for equipment
cost share funding. Applicants can seek to purchase new or used equipment with cost share funding.
Equipment cost share awards will vary from 25 to 50 percent of the total cost of the equipment, up to a
maximum of $25,000.

 “There are very few places where farmers can find financial assistance to purchase the specialized
equipment they need to add a value-added enterprise,” said Blake Brown, Hugh C. Kiger Professor in
the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics and member of the N.C. MarketReady team.
“The N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission and N.C. State niversity provide an opportunity for such
assistance through the equipment cost share program of the North Carolina Value-Added Cost Share
Program.  We think this is an important contribution to help farms improve their viability by adding new enterprises profitably.”

Applications for NCVACS Equipment, spring 2010, are now available online at www.ncmarketready.org.
Applications are due by March 30, 2010. Guidelines and a list of frequently asked questions can be
found on the Web site. Award recipients will be notified by June 1, 2010.

For more information about NCVACS and VAPG, please visit www.ncmarketready.org and click on
“Value-Added Cost Share” on the left menu bar.  

N.C. MarketReady, formerly known as the Program for Value-Added & Alternative Agriculture, is a
program of N.C. Cooperative Extension, which is an educational outreach of N.C. State University and
N.C. A&T State University. N.C. MarketReady’s multidisciplinary team builds partnerships and 
educational resources to help North Carolina agriculture be more profitable. N.C. MarketReady is a
partner of the Plants for Human Health Institute at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis. Learn more
at www.ncmarketready.org or www.ces.ncsu.edu.

Media Contact: Brittany Whitmire, NCVACS program coordinator, N.C. State University N.C.
MarketReady, 919-830-9557 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . For assistance in arranging interviews,
contact Leah Chester-Davis, coordinator of communications and community outreach, N.C. State
University N.C. MarketReady, 704-250-5406 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it