local food

Growers in California reaped one-third of the $8.7 billion in direct marketing of food nationwide, said USDA in its first-ever Local Foods report, based on 2015 sales of fresh and value-added products. Farms who sold directly to institutions or intermediaries, such as wholesalers or food hubs, took the largest share, $3.4 billion, of the U.S. total.

Ecotrust, a non-profit based in Portland, Ore., opened phase one of a $23 million, 80,000-square-foot campus that is part food hall, part food hub, designed to connect small- and mid-size farms and ranches with their customers, Fast Company says. The Redd on Salmon Street offers a central warehouse where farmers, ranchers, and other producers can stash their products until they’re ready to be distributed, the magazine said.

Community supported agriculture (CSA) began as a year-long direct-marketing commitment between farmers and consumers. With local food in high demand, "on-line hubs are using sophisticated distribution technology to snap into the food chain, often using CSA to describe what they deliver," says the New York Times, some of it is neither local nor direct from the farm, such as olive oil or tropical fruit.

During a panel discussion at the summer meeting of the National Governors Association, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack urged state governments to alter the "extraction economy" of sending goods and people to the city, said the Des Moines Register. One step to bolster rural areas, Vilsack said, would be for governors to work with schools and large institutions to buy food locally.

Known for his advice, "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants," author Michael Pollan says the food system looks much like it did 10 years when he published "The Omnivore's Dilemma." Yet, Pollan tells the website New Food Economy, "The simple question that got me started on the book — where does your food come from? — is now front-of-mind for a lot of people."

Elanor Starmer, a senior adviser to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, was named acting administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service following the departure of agency chief Anne Alonzo, said a USDA spokesman.

The Great Basin Food Co-op lets shoppers see the farmers behind the food sold at the store in Reno, Nevada, through 75-second videos available via a smartphone app, says Modern Farmer.

Civic leaders in the western Iowa town of Harlan "are designing an economic development strategy around food and farm entrepreneurs," says a Wallace Center article reprinted by the Daily Yonder. The chief executive of the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Todd Valline, says, “Our goal is to establish Shelby County as the hub of the wheel of the local farm-to-table sector in the region."

Rather than argue about organic vs conventional farming or big vs small in local food production, the sector should "focus on what works best to achieve these concrete goals: Reliable and consistent production of safe, nutritious and affordable food; healthy working lands and ecosystems; and prosperous farms and communities," says the AGree farm-policy project.

A survey of professional chefs says the top food trends in 2015 are locally sourced meats and seafood, and locally grown produce, says the National Restaurant Association.

The proposed 24-acre West Louisville Food Hub, with an expected cost of $45 million, would combine urban renewal in a distressed neighborhood of Louisville, KY, with local food marketing, says Civil Eats.

Niche marketing to nearby customers is a practical outlet for thousands of smaller-scale farmers. In northwestern Colorado, yarn is being woven into the fabric of local entrepreneurship, says Harvest Public Media.

Photographer Glenn Charles made 40 stops on a 16-day bicycle trip from Bridgeport, Conn, to Portland, Me, to follow fresh food from the field to the table.

The Agriculture Department tapped five grant programs to provide a total of $52 million to support local food systems and organic agriculture. Some $27 million came through a new program to build a local distribution chain for small farmers as well as a longstanding program to aid farmers markets and other direct farmer-to-consumer outlets. Food hubs, aggregators and local processors can be pieces of a regional food system. Small and medium-size producers often are at a disadvantage when potential customers want large volumes of goods.

With 8,268 listings in the National Farmers Markets Directory, USDA is creating three new directories for local food marketing. The new catalogs will cover Community Supported Agriculture projects, food hubs and...

The Obama administration announced the "Local Food, Local Places" project to provide expert advice to rural communities to use local food systems as an engine for economic growth.

AgSec Vilsack announced the availability of $78 million to promote farmers markets and local and regional food sales. The funds are authorized through the 2014 farm law. They include $15 million to promote farmers markets, $15 million for marketing and promotional support for local food businesses, such as food hubs, and $48 million in loan guarantee for projects that focus on local food enterprises. For details, click here.

Ahead of the annual meeting of the World Bank, the United States is calling on other nations to contribute to a fund that supports local food production worldwide.