THE NORTH CAROLINA RICE FESTIVAL

Since 2019, the mission of the all-volunteer, nonprofit North Carolina Rice Festival, Inc. (NCRFI) has been to provide enlightening, family-friendly events focused on the history of rice cultivation in southeastern North Carolina and the rich and enduring impact of the Gullah Geechee—the descendants of the enslaved Africans brought to the area to cultivate that rice—on the Cape Fear region’s diverse cultural landscape. Its events are -designed to advance the NCRFI’s motto of "Education through Celebration" and to carry out its mission of attracting families, history enthusiasts, educators, tourists, and residents to various locations throughout northern Brunswick County to learn more about the region’s rice heritage while enjoying food, fun, and fellowship.

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This year, despite the loss of their beloved chairman and their first-ever experience of inclement weather on Festival Day, the NCRFI organizers braved on with a four-day suite of events—up from three last year, two the year before, and one in the inaugural 2020 Festival year. The ambitious array of Festival-related events began on a windy Wednesday, February 27, and lasted through a partly soggy Saturday, March 2, drawing a combined attendance of over 4,000 to the Brunswick County towns of Leland (“Home of the North Carolina Rice Festival”), Navassa, Supply, and Winnabow.