Moore County could soon make it easier for locally raised meat and locally grown produce to be processed and sold within the county under proposed changes to its development rules.
The Moore County Planning Board unanimously agreed Thursday to recommend approval of changes to the county’s Unified Development Ordinance that would establish standards for “Local Meat and Produce Processing and Sales.” A related rezoning request for property along N.C. 211 also received unanimous support from the board, according to Planning Board member Curtis Self.
Both matters will now move to the Moore County Board of Commissioners for consideration.
The proposed UDO amendment would address a gap in the county’s existing development rules. Planning staff said the ordinance currently does not provide a use that allows food processing and retail sales to operate together on the same property within the same zoning district.
Under the proposed changes, the county would expand its existing “Feed and Seed Sales” classification to include local meat and produce processing and sales. The new definition would cover establishments that receive meat, grain and produce from farms located within Moore County.
Permitted activities could include butchering, aging and storing meat, selling meat products to the public, milling whole grain and providing bakery, kitchen and meeting space. The proposed use would not include the slaughtering of animals.
Operations would remain subject to applicable Moore County Environmental Health, N.C. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations.
The amendment originated from a request by a property owner interested in establishing such an operation along N.C. 211. Rather than applying only to that project, however, the proposed text amendment would change the county’s UDO, establishing standards for this type of operation beyond the individual proposal.
The Planning Board also unanimously supported a rezoning request for approximately 2.33 acres along N.C. 211 where the proposed operation would be located. The property would be rezoned from Residential and Agricultural-40, or RA-40, to Neighborhood Business, or B-1.
Self described the proposals as an opportunity to create another connection between Moore County farmers and local consumers.
“This was the first step in allowing this business to work with Moore County farmers, and to give Moore County citizens another avenue to purchase Moore County raised meat and grown produce and keeping dollars right here in our county,” Self said.
County planning staff also connected the proposed amendment to broader goals contained in the 2025 Moore County Land Use Plan. Staff said the change is consistent with recommendations to preserve regional agriculture and farmland, allow local businesses and encourage emerging markets that use locally produced agricultural products.
In its proposed consistency statement, the county said the amendment would “support local farms and make local food more accessible to the citizens of Moore County.”
The Planning Board’s votes are recommendations and do not represent final approval. Both the UDO amendment and related rezoning will next go before the Moore County Board of Commissioners for consideration.
A Moore County native who has spent more than 20 years telling stories across North Carolina and beyond. He’s worked with CNN, WRAL, and CBS 17, and now serves as a Video Journalist for ABC11. Patrick has a passion for breaking news and has earned multiple awards for his coverage. He’s also a certified NWS SKYWARN Storm Spotter and was among the first news videographers in the state to become an FAA-certified drone pilot.
