The 39th annual N.C. Small Farms Week festivities kicked off March 24 in Warren County, home of 2024 co-winner of the N.C. Small Farmer of the Year award, Patrick Brown of Brown Family Farms, with a luncheon, networking, and a panel discussion designed to ignite the next generation of growers.
“We’re celebrating 39 years of connecting you to the (N.C. A&T) campus and bringing the latest innovations to you, individuals, families, and communities,” said M. Ray McKinnie, Ph.D., associate dean and administrator of Cooperative Extension at N.C. A&T. “This week celebrates our small-scale producers and large-scale impact you have on North Carolina’s $111 billion agricultural industry.”
In her comments, Warren County commissioner Angelena Kearney-Dunlap highlighted the role of small and local farmers on family businesses and economic development.
2024 Small Farmer of the Year Patrick Brown holds a commemorative clock, standing with M. Ray McKinnie, Ph.D., Associate Dean and Extension Administrator at N.C. A&T Cooperative Extension, and Shameca Battle, Ed.D., Eastern Regional Director at N.C. A&T Cooperative Extension, during the Small Farms Week Kickoff at the Warren County Armory Civic Center.
“Local farmers often develop a close network between themselves as well as local buyers,” said Kearney-Dunlap. “Local farmers impact the consumers who have grown increasingly concerned with where and how their food is being produced, so with them, we’ll be able to know from field to the table where our food comes from.”
This year’s theme, “Next Gen Agriculture”, focused on a myriad of topics dedicated to new technologies and practices aimed at boosting farm sustainability and resilience. A panel discussion, representing the “next gen”, included Brown, his son Clayton, Warren County poultry farmer Victor Hunt Jr., Warren Early College student Juniper Cummings and 4-H students Ed Jenkins and Jorga Pierce.
“The biggest challenge for new farmers coming in is the lack of knowledge and understanding of what to do, and what resources are available,” said Hunt. “I’m blessed, just like Patrick, to have a father that’s a farmer and we’re both generational farmers, so a lot of the pitfalls that (people) have starting out, someone else has already been through it.”
“The next generation of farmers need to be resourceful, adaptable and resilient,” said Cummings. “The environment is changing so much, quickly and unpredictably, and young farmers need to know different cues, what different indicator species mean, as well as building their communication skills so they can reach out and effectively share what they need with their community.”
2024 Co-Small Farmer of the Year Patrick Brown, left, congratulates Elvin and Madeline Eaton, who were named 2025 Small Farmer of the Year at the Small Farmer’s Appreciation Luncheon.
As the outgoing winner of Small Farmer of the Year, Brown received a commemorative clock by McKinnie to congratulate his farm’s success following the 2024 win, followed by a tour of Brown Family Farms to close out the first day.
“The reign was only for one year, but the title, the honor and the recognition will endure forever,” McKinnie said. “You will forever be North Carolina’s Small Farmer of the Year.”
“Hopefully, we won’t be the last Small Farmers of the Year to come out of Warren County,” Brown said. “Warren County has an essential commitment to agriculture, from tobacco production to wheat and soybean produce. I’m hoping this will prompt the younger generation coming after me to continue to excel in ag, and I will continue to preach FFA, agricultural vocational education in our public school system.”
