Love local food? Put your money where your mouth is

OK, Charlotte, it's time to step up to the plate for local foods. After launching in the Triangle earlier in the year, Funds to Farms is coming to Charlotte from 6:30-8:30 p.m. May 12 for a dinner at Triple C Brewery, 2900 Griffith St. (off South Boulevard and New Bern).

Funds to Farms is a micro-funding program for beginning farmers and food entrepreneurs, supported by Slow Food NC, the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association and The Abundance Foundation. The idea is that you pay $20 for a dinner (prepared here by chef Craig Barbour and Roots.Good.Food.) During dinner, you'll hear pitches for projects from three farmers or food entrepreneurs.

People attending the dinner get to vote on who gets the money, which comes from the money you paid to eat.

It's simple and straightforward, and it gets money in the hands of people who have immediate plans to use it to get a food business going. It's similar to the SOUP events going on in cities like New York, Philadelphia and Detroit, where people get together over a bowl of soup and raise money for community projects.

Co-sponsors in Charlotte are Edible Charlotte, Slow Food Charlotte and the Atherton Market. Get tickets here: fundstofarms.com. Go forth and sow some good.