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King County Member Training and F2T Child Care Kickoff!

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Yesterday, PSFN hosted the King County Member Training sessions and participated in the F2T Child Care Pilot Kickoff hosted by City of Seattle Early Learning and Family Support Division (ELFS). The events had been booked on the same day for the same time, so we figured, “Why not hold just the events right next door to one another?” It ended up being a big hit.  The events were held at the 2100 Building in Seattle, a building which houses thirteen nonprofit organizations which connect kids to the community that supports them, and has public meeting venues.  Because of the convenient location, PSFN staff was able to attend both events; producer members attending member trainings were able to pop their head into the enlivening Child Care Kickoff, learn about the project and its sales opportunities; and the early learning and school age community was able to meet some of the producers they’ll be working with. Talk about a new community truly coming together!

The King County Training Session was the second of five PSFN Member Trainings this spring.  The Skagit Training sessions were held March 7, and upcoming trainings include: Snohomish County on April 6 at the Snohomish County Extension Office; Island County on May 4 at the Coupeville Public Library; and Whatcom County, TBA.  The one-on-one training sessions are an opportunity for PSFN members to sit down with their individual Account Manager and PSFN’s Operations Manager to discuss ways PSFN can use its tools and resources to help move the business or organization forward.  Yesterday PSFN staff helped members source organic local flour for child care centers, gain sales access to large-scale feeding programs, and source local products for a new local retail outlet, among other things.

PSFN Operations Manager, Ann Leason, with Heidi and Rosy from 21 Acres in Woodinville discuss ways to move forward with their business. F2T Coordinator, Karen Mauden, looks on. 21 Acres is a producer member of PSFN as well as a F2T partner, but will soon be acting as a buyer as well. Their retail and processing facility in Woodinville will be nearing completion in the coming months.

In the next room, the Early Learning and Family Support (ELFS) Farm to Table Kickoff event, welcomed nearly fifteen early learning and school-age child care providers to join the Farm to Table (F2T) Project!  So far, PSFN’s F2T Project has been focused on senior meal programs.  Another realm of the project, however, is child care centers, and yesterday was the beginning of an eight-month pilot project!  The pilot will include eight ELFS-affiliated child care centers. Each center is required to make four local food purchases between now and October 2011.  Just as the providers will encourage their tots to give the new local produce a few tries, we’re hoping that by encouraging at least four local purchases, the providers themselves will get used to a new healthy habit of buying locally!

PSFN’s Farm to Community Coordinator, Emma Brewster, gave a presentation on the basics (who, what, where, why, how) of agriculture in the Pacific Northwest and how to source kid-friendly food locally.  Karen Mauden, PSFN’s F2T Coordinator, explained the ins and outs of ordering locally through F2T.  PSFN also shared fun kids recipes from PSFN Member, Breanna Oberlin, PNA Kids! Food Service Manager (Phinney Neighborhood Association) and a registered dietician. Breanna already works with whole, local foods which she gets from PSFN member, Full Circle.  Perfectly, Full Circle is the designated F2T producer for child care for the first two months of the pilot! These recipes, used by an actual care giver, nutritionally analyzed for children, made with local produce in season now from the designated farm, and already “field tested” with kiddos – were a dream come true! Thanks, Breanna, for sharing your great ideas!  PSFN and ELFS were fortunate to be joined by Bill Brown and Sabrina Wilz from Full Circle at the kickoff.  We’re so happy that the early learning and school age community at the meeting were able to personally meet the farmer they’ll be ordering from!  Both Bill and Breanna will be joining PSFN’s F2T Team this weekend at a similar Coalition for Safety and Health in Early Learning (CSHEL) training event this weekend, where we will spread the word about child care’s new and growing role in F2T!

The F2T Child Care Network (Child care sites in purple; Farms in red)

Rochelle Carlson, PSFN Member and F2T Partner from Catholic Community Services also attended the kickoff. She made the trip from Lakewood to Seattle to share with child care providers her experiences buying whole produce through F2T for her senior congregate meal programs in King County.  As both a F2T meal-provider partner/buyer, and as a mother of young children in child care, Rochelle offered a unique perspective on the ease and value of F2T for the new child care participants.  Thanks so much, Rochelle, for making the trek on our behalf!

Between the member trainings and the kickoff, yesterday was definitely a busy day for PSFN. Though busy, this is just how we want to use our time: working in person with members; making introductions and forming relationships among them; and learning from various perspectives how we can better connect all sorts of players in the local food system.  PSFN’s F2T Team is overjoyed to be working with ELFS and with the early learning and school age community as a whole. The enthusiasm and energy among this community is palpable, and we can’t wait to get started! See more pictures from the ELFS Kickoff Below, and even more on our Facebook Page.

Bill Brown and Sabrina Wilz of Full Circle join F2T Partners from PSFN, WSDA, ELFS, and other City agencies with the F2T Child Care Pilot Site Providers!

Jackie’s on board! Sandria Woods-Pollard collects a letter of commitment for Farm to Table from a child care provider!

Carol Cartmell, left, will advise child care meal providers on recipe development and nutrition using local, whole foods. Here, she visits with Full Circle representatives Sabrina Wilz and Bill Brown. Full Circle will be providing all the local foods for the child care sites for the first two months of the pilot.

Natalie and Sandria show off their signed letters of commitment from child care providers!

Posted by Emma Brewster on March 25th, 2011

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Muckleshoot Tribal Cooks Retreat

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This past weekend, PSFN’s Farm to Table (F2T) Coordinator, Karen Mauden, was invited to attend the first ever Tribal Cooks Retreat at Bastyr University. Hosted by Muckleshoot Senior Program (a F2T meal-provider partner) and Northwest Indian College, this 2-day retreat helped “sharpen both knives and healthy cooking skills” of selected tribal cooks working at Muckleshoot School, Senior and Daycare feeding sites.  This training opportunity is especially exciting for PSFN’s F2T Team, as it addresses skill development for both senior and child care meal providers, the dual foci of the F2T project.

Chef Tom French, Founder/Director of Experience Food Project; Valerie Segrest, Native Foods Nutritionist and Wendy Burdette, Muckleshoot Senior Program Manager created an eventful and meaningful curriculum.

Saturday’s agenda included:

  • Basic skills: knives, kitchen organization, time management
  • Foraging Native Foods and Plants
  • Balancing menus using fresh foods from the Pacific Northwest
  • Cooking methods with whole grains
  • Salad Dressing and Sauce Preparation
  • Integrating Nuts, Herbs and Berries into dishes
  • Creating shared meals with local foods
  • Friendly Team competitions

Chef Tom noted that originally tribes foraged, gathered, hunted and fished for their food. This does not typically happen in society in general anymore. Now, food comes to us, which limits our choices. As we return to gardening and foraging we can select our food with purpose and intention.  These themes fit well into tribal culture which Valerie and Wendy seek to encourage. At Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, Wendy has partnered hunters, gatherers and fishermen with specific tribal elders who are no longer are able to participate in those activities. This has created a greater bond of community, commitment to traditions and hope that future generations will eat and celebrate northwest native foods and traditions, which in turn will lead to better health.

Tribal cooks were thrilled with the retreat. They were challenged to, and succeed in, presenting plates with a rainbow of colors and bursting with flavor. Splitting into teams from School Lunch, Senior Feeding and Daycare cooks were challenged to create and present nutritious, balanced and welcoming meals. The results included beautiful Breakfast Frittatas, Poached eggs on Herbed Potatoes, Bountiful Vegetarian Breakfast Burritos, Hazelnut Encrusted Salmon and much more. It seemed everyone felt empowered to return to the tribal community and create healthier, more colorful and flavorful foods from the bounty of the Pacific Northwest.

What a great event! PSFN is overjoyed to be working with Wendy and with Muckleshoot Indian Tribe on the Farm to Table project. We’re very impressed at the focus given to kitchen skills and training by the tribe. These are necessary skills for working with the fresh, whole foods the F2T project makes available to meal -provider partners, and we’re inspired by their initiative! While popping into the retreat, Karen delivered Muckleshoot’s first F2T delivery: 50 lbs of potatoes from Full Circle. Here’s to the beginning of what we hope will be a very successful partnership!

Posted by Emma Brewster on March 23rd, 2011

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F2T Partners visit F2T Producer 21 Acres

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Today Karen and Emma, PSFN’s Farm to Table (F2T) team were joined by other members of the F2T Partnership on a tour of 21 Acres in Woodinville.  F2T representatives from WSDA and Aging and Disability Services (ADS), as well as senior meal site partner Catholic Community Services (CCS) were all able to make the trip out today.  21 Acres (a PSFN member since November 2010) was the first farm to make a F2T connection and delivery! In January, Farm Manager Rosy Smit personally delivered 50 lbs of freshly harvested leeks to F2T meal partner, Chicken Soup Brigade. The leeks were quickly made into a yummy Caribbean tilapia dish with lime and leeks and was delivered shortly to Chicken Soup Brigade clients. Rosy and the rest of 21 Acres’ staff  continue to be a wonderful partner in F2T and in the local food economy on the whole.

21 Acres is in the process of building an impressive structure.  Once complete, this facility will include a retail co-op for the farm’s and others’ products. The building will also have a natural root cellar, cold storage, rent-able commercial kitchens for the development of value-added products, kitchen classrooms, office space, and will serve as a drop point for wholesale transactions. The building itself will be super eco-friendly, complete with a rooftop garden, composting toilets, and even a shower to encourage employees to bike to work (21 Acres is on a couple of bike trails!).  This will be such a great, central facility – we can’t wait to see the completed building.

Check out these photos of the F2T Partnership visit to 21 Acres today!

A lovely morning in Woodinville (the weather held just long enough for us to complete our 90-minute tour!)

21 Acres Farm Manager, Rosy Smit, points out the lay of the land to F2T Partners: Rochelle Carlson (CCS), Karen (PSFN), Shoko Kumagai (WSDA), while 21 Acres Facilities Manager, Brooke, looks on

An on-site (in-field!) brick pizza oven makes 21 Acres a great spot for educational tours for all ages. Now THAT'S Farm to Table!

F2T Project Manager Maria Langlais of Aging & Disability Services checks out the farm

Mmmmm... garlic!

Karen (PSFN), Brooke (21 Acres), Rochelle (CCS), Shoko (WSDA), and Heidi (21 Acres) listen to Rosy talk about opportunities for veterans' groups at the farm

Though it looks a little austere now, come summer this will be a beautiful and flourishing comprehensive agricultural center!

Heidi Pomeroy, Retail Manager for 21 Acres, points out to the group how classrooms, kitchens, and retail space will all come together in the new facility

Thanks for a great day, 21 Acres, and thanks to our awesome F2T Partners for braving the weather to come check out the other side of institutional food service and production. What a great group of people to be working with!

Posted by Emma Brewster on March 11th, 2011

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Member Training Sessions are off to a Good Start!

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Yesterday, PSFN hosted the first of many PSFN Member Training Sessions.  These one-on-one, hour-long meetings are an opportunity for producers, buyers, and service providers alike to meet with your PSFN Account Manager and to ask necessary questions to help move your business forward.

Kai Ottenson of Hedlin Farms meets with his PSFN Account Manager, Ann Leason, and learns how to enhance his PSFN online profile

We’ve developed these trainings because we want to know from YOU, individually, what your business’s specific needs are.  How can we work with you to help you reach your goals? Whether it’s one-on-one introductions, mini trade meetings, logistical help, wholesale markets, or brainstorming ideas for where you want to expand customer base, we want to discuss all the ways your PSFN membership can connect you with the local buyers, producers, or infrastructure you need.

Yesterday’s training in Skagit County (held at NABC’s offices in Mount Vernon) was busy – we had a totally booked day!  Members came with great questions and open minds.  I think, together, we came up with a lot of good ideas and connections.  A big thanks to Ann Leason, our Operations Manager, for facilitating every single session!

Kai and Ann brainstorm and discuss alternative strategies for gaining additional CSA members for Hedlin's upcoming season

As a member, you’re incredibly valuable to us as partners in the local food economy and as friends. What can we do for you to make your membership more valuable to you?  Book your one-on-one session today and receive individualized assistance on the best ways to utilize your annual membership to build your business:

Upcoming Training Dates Contact Ann Leason to RSVP or for more info: ann@psfn.org / 360-336-3666

March 23rd – King County*
2100 Building: 2100 24th Avenue South, Seattle
1-hour appointments available 8 AM – 5 PM
*A special opportunity for King County training attendees: the training will be taking place simultaneously and in the same building as, a Farm to Table Kick-off event for King County Childcare providers.  This is a great opportunity to meet a large group of buyers who will begin placing orders shortly!

April 6th – Snohomish County
Snohomish County Extension Office: 600 128th Street SE, Everett
1-hour appointments available 8 AM – 5 PM

Whatcom County
RESCHEDULED – TBA

May 4th – Island County
Coupeville Public Library: 788 NW Alexander St. Coupeville
1-hour appointments available 8 AM – 5 PM

Contact Ann Leason to RSVP or for more information: ann@psfn.org / 360-336-3666

Posted by Emma Brewster on March 8th, 2011

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Farm to Table Trade Meeting – Bellingham, WA 2/22/11

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This Tuesday, February 22, the Puget Sound Food Network attended the Northwest Washington Farm-to-Table Trade Meeting in Bellingham, WA. Sustainable Connections, Cascade Harvest Coalition and the Northwest Agriculture Business Center hosted the event. The focus of this meeting was to allow for one-on-one networking and to learn what’s working in our local food economy in regards to getting locally produced foods into grocery stores, institutions, schools, and ultimately on the plate in front of you.

Lucy Norris, PSFN Project Manager facilitated a discussion on “What’s working in Farm to School & Farm to Hospital.”  PSFN members Chris Johnson, Executive Chef of United General Hospital and Clayton Burrows, Executive Director of Growing Washington, as well as Chris Kenney, WWU Dining Services and Mark Dalton from the Bellingham School Districts shared with the audience the major hurdles and successes that their institutions have faced while putting local food on their menus. Of the panel members that work for institutions, they want to put more locally produced goods into their institutions, but in most cases have limited infrastructure or funding to process or store them.

Two other panel discussions were facilitated and allowed for the audiences to ask questions and start conversations. Facilitator, Sarah Wilcox from the Cascade Harvest Coalition questioned a panel on the “Economic Benefits of Diverse Markets and Operations” and facilitator Mariah Ross from Sustainable Connections questioned a panel on “The Business of Sustainability: how it works for your bottom line”.

The day ended with one -on-one Producer/Buyer sessions. The local producers and buyers were able to obtain expert advice on marketing, zero waste practices, business planning, and food safety techniques. Local vintners, cheese makers, and various other producers offered samples of their amazing products during this time. Yum!

Producers and buyers walked away from the Northwest Washington Farm-to-Table Trade Meeting with priceless knowledge, valuable contact information, and full bellies. What a successful event!

Posted by Emma Brewster on February 25th, 2011

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PSFN Receives CPPW Grant Funding for Partnership with Seattle Human Services

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On July 21, 2010, City of Seattle-King County Public Health announced the 2010 award recipients who applied for $8.9 million in Communities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW) grants.  Award recipients represent many talented and passionate local organizations committed to increasing healthy choices for King County residents.

Seattle Human Services Department was awarded two HEAL (Healthy Eating/Active Living) grants and Puget Sound Food Network (PSFN) is receiving partial funding for its participation in one focused on connecting local food to Seattle’s least served communities through the Congregate/Home Delivered Meal Program.  The goal of this project is to make healthy foods, preferably local products, affordable for senior congregate and home-delivered meals and child care centers by cooperatively purchasing fresh local produce through a Farm-to-Table partnership.

Aging and Disability Services will set up regular Farm-to-Table coordination meetings to create a strategy for and track the progress of the cooperative purchase of local produce from local farmers. Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) will assess senior meal provider capacity to plan seasonal menus, store and prepare fresh produce. WSDA will also train meal site managers as needed. WSDA and PSFN will work together to identify and link meal program purchasers to ethnically diverse farmers who have produce available at an affordable price. Clean Greens Farm will expand growing capacity within existing land to offer produce that meets meal provider cost and produce specifications. Meal providers will purchase processing equipment as needed, facilitate staff training, and pilot test cooperative purchasing at 2 to 3 meal sites. After the pilot test, meal providers will implement cooperative purchasing for home-delivered and congregate meals. WSDA will assess the feasibility of expansion of cooperative purchasing to ELFS child care centers.

PSFN is receiving a total of $57,624 of the $200,000 awarded to this specific project to hire a contractor who will serve as “benevolent broker” for a 12-month term, and act as PSFN’s project liaison working directly with local food producers on behalf of senior meal services, childcare centers and public school sites identified by Seattle Human Services in underserved South Seattle.  It will be PSFN’s responsibility to directly identify local food sources, negotiate pricing and create solutions that will lead to a richer understanding to create opportunities for expansion and modeling for similar models in other cities, especially underserved communities.  PSFN will be tasked with tracking and reporting our contributions to this project, identifying key obstacles, and creating new solutions for the future.  The full project’s duration is twenty months starting this month.  Recruitment for the 12-month HEAL project contractor will commence in late 2010.

PSFN is proud to be engaged in this new partnership because it has enormous potential to make a positive impact on the health and sustainability of both urban and rural communities, while helping to preserve our rich farming traditions in Northwest Washington by creating diverse market opportunities for local food.

For more information about CPPW, it’s goals and a full list of direct grant recipients, please visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/partnerships/CPPW.aspx.

Please contact Lucy Norris, PSFN Project Manager, at lucy@psfn.org for information related to PSFN’s role in this important new project.

Posted by Lucy Norris on July 28th, 2010

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CSAs Mean Business

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Many people already know the definition of Community Support Agriculture or CSA, but for the rest, let’s just say it is a grassroots partnership between a farmer and individuals that helps reconnect eaters to the source of their food. Before season, a farm will assign monetary value of producing say, 20 weeks worth of food, and then divide this amount into “shares” and charge a flat upfront fee to anyone in a given community who wants to participate. The shareholders (or individuals and families) then receive weekly “shares,” boxes or bags of seasonal produce (and sometimes animal products) grown on that farm or collective of local farms throughout the season. Provided there are no dramatic hiccups in production, everybody wins.

There are many types of CSA operations in Northwest Washington.  A compliment to farmers markets and grocery stores, CSAs are responding to consumers desire for food that is local, fresh, delicious, fair, and clean to eat.  It also helps establish a rapport between producer and consumer–building community through food.

Several years ago while living in Portland, I was introduced to the concept of “CSAs for restaurants.”  Our local Slow Food chapter held a lecture on the subject with Chef John Taboada of Navarre restaurant who purchased shares for his small kitchen in NE Portland from 47th Ave Farm (http://www.47thavefarm.com).  His kitchen was rather small but highly creative and the menu flexible. He and his staff were committed to sourcing local and seasonal, not only because of high ideals, but because the food quality was excellent. To this day, Chef Taboada maintains his relationship with 47th Ave Farm through CSA shares because the mutually supportive relationship works for his business- in terms of balancing cost to overall quality his customers seek.

Since Moving to Washington, I have queried restaurants in the Seattle area to find out who here receives CSAs in their kitchens.  So far, not one has been identified but I’m sure they are out there. I have found more businesses are offering their locations as drop sites, making it easy for their employees to participate in CSAs. Says PSFN member Clayton Burrows of Growing Washington,

“We don’t deliver CSAs to restaurants, per say, but we certainly are helping to lead the charge with workplace CSAs.  We basically utilize businesses and drop-off points for our CSA.  We ask that businesses have at least five people sign up for a box, and then we deliver their food to their place of work each week.  Some of the businesses pay a portion of the share, some do it through payroll deduction.  We also do Business Share Snack Packs, where we deliver snack type items (e.g. berries, cherry tomatoes, pickling cucumbers, salads, grapes, etc.), to businesses each week.  Our workplace CSA program is going great.”

There are a variety of CSA farms and local produce box delivery services within the Puget Sound Food Network and can be researched at www.psfn.org. Before choosing, business owners should keep in mind that each producer is unique in terms of certifications, geography, delivery options, products offered, cost and seasonal share availability. They include:

  • DEVine Gardens
  • The Raven and the Spade
  • Sol to Seed Farm
  • Whidbey Green Goods
  • Willowood Farm on Ebey’s Prairie
  • Greenbank Farm
  • Growing Washington
  • Maha Farm
  • Molly’s Island Garden
  • Full Circle Farm in Carnation

As a business, you can to decide if a weekly CSA share will work for you, your employees or your restaurant kitchen. But you’ll need to decide quickly!  Many CSA farms are gearing up for their first of the season deliveries. In fact, Growing Washington just announced on their Facebook page, “You’ve got less than 48 hours to sign up for our Local Choice Food Box in King and Snohomish Counties and then they are closing down registration for the season.”

For more information about choosing a CSA for your business or restaurant, please login to PSFN and search CSAs in the member profiles, paying attention to the names of the above farms.  You can also find an exhaustive directory of CSAs in the Puget Sound Fresh 2010 Farm Guide or online at http://www.pugetsoundfresh.org/csa.htm.

Contributing blogger Lucy Norris is Puget Sound Food Network’s Regional Food Systems Developer.  For more information, please see staff bios at http://www.psfn.org/staff/

Posted by Lucy Norris on June 1st, 2010

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Micro-Loan Program from HumanLinks

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The HumanLinks Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to systematic improvements in education, healthcare and sustainable agriculture, is offering a micro-loan program to sustainable farmers to help strengthen the Washington farming community.

As of March 2010, the Foundation, partnering with Banner Bank, will enable credit access to farmers who may not have been able to secure a loan through a more conventional bank. Administered by Banner Bank, the Foundation will give local, sustainable farmers the ability to borrow funds at a favorable interest rate (3%) for up to 2 years. The minimum loan size is $2,500 and the maximum loan size is $25,000.

This loan program will be available for the next three months. The application deadline is May 31, 2010. For more information about the loan program and fund availability, please visit the HumanLinks Foundation website at www.humanlinksfoundation.org or contact Nancy Iscovitz at nancy@humanlinksfoundation.org.

Posted by Elliot on March 17th, 2010

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Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) Trainings

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Many farmers are seeking information about good agricultural practices in response to recent outbreaks associated with produce. This course will provide specific information regarding on-farm produce food safety (Good Agricultural Practices, GAPs).

Several commodity groups have established guidelines for good agricultural practices; however, differences in recommendations leave producers wondering how to proceed. Speakers represent a multi-disciplinary group of WSU faculty and regulatory agencies and will offer science-based information.

A two-series workshop will be offered.  Session 1 will provide a GAPs overview and initial guidance on implementing on-farm food safety practices.  Session 2 will offer participants the opportunity to work with speakers to address food safety issues specific to their farming system. Session 2 information will be provided at a later date.

All GAPs I attendees need to visit the food safety website for registration and updated information: http://foodsafety.wsu.edu/

 

Session I

January 26, 2010 @ WSU Snohomish County Ext. Cougar Auditorium, 600 128th St SE, Everett, WA 98208-6353

Session II

March 1, 2010 @ Quality Inn & Conference Center, 1700 Canyon Rd, Ellensburg, WA 98926

March 2, 2010 @ St Philip Neri Parish, 2408  SE 16th Ave, Portland, OR 97214

March 8, 2010 @ WSU Snohomish County Ext. Cougar Auditorium, 600 128th St SE, Everett, WA 98208-6353

March 9, 2010 @ WSU Whatcom County Extension, 1000 N. Forest Street, Suite 201, Bellingham, WA  98225

This material is based upon work supported by USDA/CSREES under Award Number 2007-49200-03892. Funding for Good Agricultural Practices workshops was awarded to a team of Washington State University faculty by the Washington State University Western Center for Risk Management Education and the USDA Cooperative State Research Education and Extension Service (CSREES).

 

For more information contact:

GAPS: Karen Killinger, Ph.D.

WSU Assistant Professor

Phone:  (509)335-2970 Email: karen_killinger@wsu.edu

 

Registration: Cathy Blood

Conference Coordinator

Phone: (509)335-2845

Email:blood@wsu.edu

Posted by Elliot on January 21st, 2010

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Regional Food Economic Impact Quotes

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Tim Crosby, Puget Sound Food Network’s Network Coordinator, gathered some interesting quotes from States around the US. Each quote gives us a glimpse into the economic climate of each State’s food cycle. All follow a similar trend, that if State spending is shifted to local farms and produce, there is a dramatic increase in jobs and economic output.

King County, WA

A shift of 20% of our food dollars into locally directed spending would result in a nearly half billion dollar annual income increase in King County alone and double that in the Central Puget Sound region.

Source: Viki Sonntag, “Why Local Linkages Matter: Findings from the Local Food Economy Study,” Sustainable Seattle, April 2008, http://sustainableseattle.org/Programs/localfoodeconomy

 

Oregon

For every food dollar spent locally by the two school districts, an additional 87 cents was spent in Oregon, generating a multiplier of 1.87 for farm to school spending.

Dollars spent in Oregon agriculture reverberated into 401 of 409 of the state’s economic sectors.

Source: Ecotrust, ” Farm to School Investment Yields a Healthy Return into State Coffers”, March 18, 2009, http://www.ecotrust.org/press/f2s_investment_20090318.html , viewed March 19, 2009


Iowa

If Iowans purchased a quarter of their produce from Iowa farmers, it would create $139.9 million in new economic output and more than 2,000 jobs for the state.

Source: Sarah DeWeerdt, “Local Food: The Economics”, Worldwatch Magazine, Worldwatch Institute, July/August 2009

Iowa State University research showed that if that region’s consumers ate five locally-grown fruits and vegetables each day for only the three months when they are in season, it would create $6.3 million of labor income, and 475 new jobs within the locale.

Secondary Source: Ken Meter, “Local Food as Economic Development” Crossroads Resource Center October, 2008, http://www.crcworks.org/lfced.pdf

Primary Source: Swenson, David (2008).  “Economic Impact Summaries” covering Black Hawk County region. March.  University of Northern Iowa Center for Energy and Environmental Education.

 

Illinois

Even small increases in the amount of food grown for local consumption can generate an enormous amount of new economic activity, all of it within the state, for farmers and others in food-related businesses … generating $20 to $30 billion in economic activity and thousands of new jobs in farming and the food industry each year.

Source: Illinois Local and Organic Food and Farm Task Force, ” Local Food, Farms & Jobs: Growing the Illinois Economy: A Report to the Illinois General Assembly By The Illinois Local and Organic Food and Farm Task Force”, March 2009, http://www.foodfarmsjobs.org/ , viewed May 14, 2009

 

 

Detroit, MI

Just in the city of Detroit, shifting twenty percent of food spending would increase annual output by nearly half a billion dollars. More than 4,700 jobs would be created, paying $125 million more in earnings. The city would receive nearly $20 million more in business taxes each year.

Source: Michael Shuman, “Economic Impact of Localizing Detroit’s Food System”, Fair Food Foundation, http://www.fairfoodnetwork.org/pdf/handout070617.pdf , viewed May 18, 2009

 

 

New Jersey Fresh, NJ

The study showed that each dollar spent on the Jersey Fresh program increased farm revenues by $31.54 … and $54.49 of increased economic output in the State. With a current budget for Jersey Fresh being about $800,000, this means an increase in farm revenues of $25.2 million, and a total increase in economic output for the state of $43.6 million.

Source: New Jersey Dept. of Agriculture, 2004 Annual Report: Agricultural Statistics, http://www.state.nj.us/agriculture/04AnnualReport.pdf

Posted by Elliot on January 11th, 2010

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