Wisdom and Cherie Jzar started farming for their family, but it grew into much more.
The couple is behind DeepRoots CPS Farms, located in Charlotte, NC, which opened in 2019,
reports The Charlotte Observer. The initials of the business represent “community planning solutions.”“We started as homesteaders wanting to grow food for our family and ballooned to producing enough that we could share with our neighbors,” Cherie told the outlet.
Per the farm’s Instagram page, they even have a
partnership with Gaston County Schools to provide
students locally-grown foods.
The 7-acre farm has been fertile soil for herbs, vegetables, and mushrooms. Additionally, chickens, ducks, goats, beehives, and a palomino horse can be found on the land.
“We were intentional about being
farmers because we know that the number of Black farmers is significantly declining across the country,” Cherie expressed. “We built this farm because we wanted it to serve as an example to the community about the possibilities.”
Three years into tending to their farm, the Jzars recognized their plot of land was not enough.
“We have requested demands we can’t fulfill right now,” Cherie explained. “Access (to land) seems to be getting further away.”
Their desires for new land will now be made possible in 2024 in light of their
partnership with the Carolina Farms Fund, an initiative that supports local food production. Its first farm partnership, the fund is branch of the Atlanta-based nonprofit The Conservation Fund, established in 2020. This will allow the Black-owned farm to secure an additional 44 acres, located on Macedonia Church Road, approximately 50 miles south of the original location. The land was purchased for $1.4 million through an agricultural conservation easement, the outlet notes.
“With their commitment to building trust and inclusivity, especially for new and beginning farmers who have faced challenges and inequities in gaining the support needed for business development and growth, Cherie and Wisdom are exactly the kind of partners we are looking for,” Carolina Farms Fund board chairman Tim Belk told the publication.
The Jzars will be under a lease agreement for four years before they can consider purchasing the land for
ownership.“We had put so much of our labor and resources into farming the land we were on, land ownership was where we needed to be,” Cherie said.
