NABC welcomes Lucy Norris, the Puget Sound Food Network’s Regional Food Developer.  Lucy will be responsible for connecting regional buyer needs with producer products, assisting the completion of transactions, building relationships, and continuing research pertinent to increasing the production, consumption, and distribution of regional food.

Lucy brings to PSFN a unique professional background. For three years, Lucy has developed and managed customized research and consulting projects helping clients understand the complexities of consumer and shopper behavior around food and beverage trends, specifically health and wellness, sustainability and organics. Working directly with some of the largest food companies in the world, Lucy has negotiated new business contracts and designed research studies, advised clients on new products and creative planning for brands, holds expertise on integrating sustainability into the value chain, and knows how best to connect with media services to market and communicate about sustainable foods.

Before moving to Seattle, Lucy did research for a technical services team at the Portland, OR Food Innovation Center, was interim editor of Ecotrust’s “Guide to Local Seasonal Products for Oregon and Washington 2006 and conducted interviews with Northwest food producers, buyers, and sellers; served on Portland’s Community Nutrition Advisory Committee and the Food Policy Task Force; managed operations for shared-use commercial kitchen; and worked with Oregon Department of Agriculture on developing products for international trade initiatives and product showcase events.

Lucy has served as volunteer co-leader of Slow Food Seattle since 2007, and wrote the book “Pickled: Preserving a World of Tastes and Traditions”. She is a member of the Association of the Study of Food and Society and part of the Technical Advisory Committee for the Seattle Culinary Academy at Seattle Central Community College.