Hickory Nut Gap has announced its partnership with the North Carolina Farm to School Program, a state-wide, voluntary program established in 1997 to provide N.C. schools with local, N.C. grown products. Hickory Nut Gap teamed up with the Farm to School Program amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in November 2020, as one of the first two suppliers of local grassfed and pasture raised meats. In just four short months during this difficult time, Hickory Nut Gap has been able to serve their 100% grassfed beef 80/20 blend in fan-favorite dishes like Salisbury steak and tacos to school districts across nine counties in North Carolina including Hyde, Pamlico, Perquimans, Randolph, Sampson, Avery, Buncombe, Clay, and Watauga.

As schools begin to re-open, Hickory Nut Gap will be showcased at the first annual Farm to School Week (April 19 – 23, 2021), a week where four counties in NC (Craven, Pamlico, Jones, Carteret) are serving almost exclusively local, NC products all week long in efforts to better educate their students about the benefits of eating local.