This Black Woman-Owned Farm is Adapting and Thriving During The COVID-19 Pandemic

Due to the global COVID-19 outbreak, many people around the U.S. and the world have lost their jobs as a result of the public health crisis giving rise to record-breaking numbers filing unemployment claims and small business owners struggling to keep their doors open through the viral outbreak. One entrepreneur, however, has found a way to not only adapt quickly to the pandemic but found a way to make her business thrive.

Samantha Foxx was inspired to get back to nature coupled with a need to build a self-sufficient lifestyle when she founded Mother’s Finest Urban Farms in Charlotte, North Carolina. The 2.5-acre farm has a range of animals from bees, chickens, worms, mushrooms, and specialty items. Foxx, who goes by “farm mother” and is a North Carolina native, used her background in farming and beekeeping to start the local farm to serve the community.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, her business has seen an increase in sales for new and existing customers. “People are investing more into their local farmers and seeing food as a source of wellness and having access to fresh quality produce is becoming more relevant,” Foxx told ShoppeBlack in an interview. “Larger agriculture producers can travel for long periods and produce passes through several hands before it hits store shelves. We also have had more people signing up for CSA shares and investing to help us expand and supply as much produce to our community as possible.”

Despite the fears brought on by the viral outbreak, Foxx remains hopeful using her business as a way to comfort others through a difficult time.”Food is comforting to many people and knowing where their next meal is coming from is so important,” says Foxx. “Seeing the smiles on a family’s face, when we drop off a box to their doorstep is worth all of the hard work.”