Preserving Orange County Farmland for Future Generations
Ben Grimes
Dear Orange County Board of Commissioners,
My name is Ben Grimes, and I am an Orange County farmer raising livestock and selling meat directly to the end consumer in the Triangle-area market. I have been in business since 2013 and farming full-time since 2017. I am also a first-generation farmer, and I am deeply grateful to be farming in Orange County.
One of the reasons Orange County is such a special place to farm—particularly as a direct-to-consumer producer—is its proximity to a large and engaged population that values local food. Having customers close to where food is grown allows farms like mine to remain economically viable while reducing transportation costs, fuel use, and time spent off the farm. Preserving farmland near population centers ensures that local food remains truly local. Without intentional action, we risk becoming like other large metropolitan areas where farmers must drive hours to reach urban markets, increasing costs, emissions, and barriers for small and mid-sized farms. Protecting farmland in and around Orange County preserves this essential relationship between farmers and consumers for the future.
Orange County has long been a leader in supporting agriculture. Through grants, land-use planning, and agricultural buffer zones, the county has shown a genuine commitment to safeguarding farming for future generations. Even the fact that we are having serious, public conversations about farmland preservation puts Orange County well ahead of many neighboring counties that are losing agricultural land at an even faster pace.
That said, we are still losing farmland at an unsustainable rate. Between 2017 and 2022, Orange County lost roughly 50% of its cropland. This pace of loss should concern all of us. Our biggest threat is prime farmland being sold to developers for housing—often precisely because this land percs well for septic systems. Once farmland is developed, it loses its life-giving capacity. Compacted soils, infrastructure, and fragmentation make it effectively impossible to return that land to productive agriculture.
Agriculture matters deeply to Orange County and North Carolina for several key reasons.
First, agriculture is a major economic driver. Agriculture and agribusiness contribute over $95 billion annually to North Carolina’s economy and support hundreds of thousands of jobs statewide. Locally, farms support feed suppliers, processors, veterinarians, equipment dealers, markets, restaurants, and rural employment. When farmland disappears, these economic benefits disappear with it.
Second, agriculture provides food security and local food resilience. Locally produced food shortens supply chains, keeps food dollars circulating in our community, and provides stability during disruptions—whether from fuel shortages, climate events, or national supply chain failures. Having farmers close to population centers like the Triangle is not a luxury; it is a strategic asset.
Third, farmland provides irreplaceable environmental benefits. Well-managed agricultural land supports biodiversity, wildlife habitat, and working landscapes that can act as carbon sinks, storing carbon in soils and perennial vegetation. When farmland is replaced with housing, we lose these benefits and instead gain more lawns, more fertilizer and pesticide runoff into waterways, and increased light pollution. Excessive outdoor lighting disrupts native wildlife, including lightning bugs and migratory birds, whose populations are already in decline.
With more houses on rural land, we do not just lose agricultural production—we lose farm jobs, wildlife habitat, environmental services, and long-term climate resilience. These losses are permanent.
At the same time, farmland preservation does not mean opposing housing or growth. Instead, it means directing growth to the right places. Making it easier to build within towns and existing urban areas benefits everyone. Compact, walkable communities support better public health, stronger local economies, and a higher quality of life. Walkable towns reduce car dependence, lower infrastructure costs, and encourage local business activity. For the county and municipalities, concentrating development within existing towns is fiscally responsible—it prevents the need to stretch roads, utilities, emergency services, and schools across ever-expanding rural areas. By prioritizing infill and town-centered development, we can meet housing needs while protecting the rural landscapes that define Orange County.
While Orange County is doing more than many communities, it is not yet enough to meet the scale and urgency of the problem. In addition to buffers, we need stronger programs that actively incentivize farmland to remain in agriculture. I urge you to consider:
Policies that require or tax developers who remove land from agricultural use, with those funds dedicated specifically to farmland preservation and agricultural development
Expanded funding for agricultural easements and preservation programs
Incentives or subsidies for landowners who sell farmland to farmers rather than developers
Increased investment in farmer access to markets, infrastructure, and grant programs
Additional resources for rural communities to keep farming economically viable
Above all, I urge you to listen closely to the Orange County Agricultural Preservation Board. These volunteer members have dedicated immense time and thought to this issue, and many of the ideas in this letter come directly from conversations with them. Their expertise should be central to county decision-making on land use and development.
As County Commissioners, I ask you to make farmland preservation a front-and-center issue. If we do not act decisively—and now—there will soon be no farmland left to preserve. We will have lost wildlife habitat, agricultural capacity, local jobs, food security, and a way of life that defines Orange County.
We are losing land quickly, and we cannot make more of it. I respectfully ask you to build on the strong foundation you have already created and meet this moment with urgency.
Thank you for your leadership and for your commitment to Orange County’s farmers and future.
Sincerely,
Ben Grimes
Jean Hamilton
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2026 12:17 PM
To: ALL_BOCC_MANAGER_CLERK <OCB...@orangecountync.gov>; Earl McKee <emc...@orangecountync.gov>; Phyllis Portie-Ascott <pportie...@orangecountync.gov>; Sally Greene <sgr...@orangecountync.gov>; Amy Fowler <afo...@orangecountync.gov>
Subject: Preserving Orange County Farmland for Future Generations
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