Berea College will be opening a farm store offering produce, harvested and prepared by its students, to the public, the Lexington Herald Leader reported.
The liberal arts college will be selling goods such as fruits, vegetables, fish and raised meat from their 1,400-acre farm in central Kentucky.
Store manager Bethany Pratt told the Lexington Herald Leader the new venue will be staffed by students and will operate as "a learning, living laboratory" for them.
"This gives students another way to learn what you do after you raise these beautiful pigs," Pratt said. "How do you use those skills?"
A brick building constructed by Berea students with clerestory windows and a vaulted, poplar ceiling made from wood harvested from Berea College's forests will be used to house the new store, according to the Lexington Herald Leader.
The building, which is currently under construction, will feature a retail area, two bread ovens and a butchering area. A milling facility will be located behind the store to process small grains, beans and popcorn. Student Emily Grace Sarver-Wolf works on the farm and is excited about developing farm products for the new store.
"The goal is a lot of people walking to the store from campus," Sarver-Wolf said.
Berea College farm sells their agricultural goods at the Berea Farmers market, but the college wanted a space to sell their products year-round. Janet Meyer, assistant farm manager at the college, said the school's farm have the potential to produce enough good to supply the new farm store.
"What we do is just grow enough for the farmers' market," Meyer said. "If there is more demand, we can up production pretty easily."
Berea College's farm site also raise cosmos for the Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, a company committed to heirloom organic vegetables, herb and flower varieties, for which Berea College also raises tomatoes, peppers and beans. The revenue generated from the farms will be used to support sustainable agricultural education for Berea College students, according to the college's website.
School officials hope to open the store before the end of the year.