Zoë Dehmer, director of operations and planning at Acme Food & Beverage, is one of the founders of Carrboro United. She recently spoke with 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck about the future of the program.
“We have no plans to shut down,” Dehmer said. “What I’ve noticed is maybe by accident, but Carrboro United is not just a response to the pandemic, I think it is a response to a need that was not being met locally in terms of how we feed ourselves.”
Carrboro United provides family style meals as a one-stop shop. Three times a week community members can pick up meals from local locations and independent restaurants, including everyting from roasted coffee, eggs, humanely raised meats, and grocery staples.
In October 2020, Carrboro United passed one million dollars in sales and relocated permanently to the parking lot of University Place mall in Chapel Hill – to better serve the broader Orange County community.
Not only has the program been popular amongst residents, Dehmer said businesses have told them Carrboro United is the difference between having to furlough their staff or close.
“I know everyone has been doing everything in their power to innovate so its not just us,” Dehmer said. “I know that its made a huge impact for us at Acme to be able to sell what is essentially a catering. We know what our costs are ahead of time. People are pre-ordering the meals, so it’s guaranteed for us and in this climate nothing is guaranteed so it’s really some stability that we all need.”
Forty-five different local vendors have participated as part of the food hub since the programs inception. Dehmer said she hopes Carrboro United could be the new meal kit for healthy and delicious foods.
“People have always had very busy lives and they have kids to feed and its an option for people when eating at home is the right choice but cooking at home is not the easy choice,” Dehmer said.
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