Home Grown Economy

Peterson says local foods can booster economic development

2007-05-06T03:37:02Z

Gretchen Schlosser
West Central Tribune - 04/03/2007
MORRIS — Consumers are growing more concerned and aware of where their food comes from while
farmers and rural communities are seeking new ways to bolster their economic livelihood.
Connecting the hungry consumers and local producers was the focus Monday of a day-long seminar at
the University of Minnesota-Morris sponsored by U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn.
“This is something that the American people are looking for and asking for,�? Peterson said, noting that
even Wal-Mart and Safeway are reaching into the organic market because of consumer interest.

]]> Research by the University of Minnesota shows that 95 percent of shoppers surveyed prefer to buy local foods, according to Robert King, economics professor at the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities. Their key motivation is to get better quality and freshness. The study was conducted last summer and included 500 respondents at six locations — farmers markets, supermarkets and a natural foods store — in the Twin
Cities area.

How “local�? is actually defined is up to consumers, he added. Most consumers surveyed in the Twin Cities define “local�? as all of Minnesota and Wisconsin, but some also thought “local�? was only the Twin Cities
metro area. “The definition of local is really up for grabs,�? he said. “That definition needs to be consumer-centric,
not producer-centric.�?

On the other side of the dinner plate are farmers, who in most regions of the country are producing billions of dollars’ worth of food, but are losing money doing it and making up the difference in federal farm payments and off-farm income, according to Ken Meter, president of the Crossroads Resource Center, Minneapolis.

“It is very difficult for farms to make it on growing crops alone,�? Meter said. “We have a subsidy program that extracts wealth from rural communities.�? Each year, a billion dollars leaves the 12 counties in west central Minnesota from Renville and Yellow Medicine counties north to Traverse, Grant and Douglas counties, he said. Farmers lose $150 million raising crops, spend $600 million on farm inputs per year from outside suppliers and consumers spend $250 million on food from outside sources each year.

“The average food item travels 1,500 miles from farmer to consumer,�? he said. “As energy prices increase, so will our food prices. There is every reason to build an infrastructure to connect farmers and consumers,�? Meter said.
There are local, direct-selling farmers in the region, research shows, including 271 farms that sell $870,000 worth of food directly to consumers.

If consumers in the region bought 20 percent of their food directly from farmers. it would bring in $70 million in new farm income to the region, and cut the distance food travels and energy used to feed the 173,000 people living in the region.

The university is one of the driving forces in creating demand for local foods. In 2001, the university sought a new food supplier for the 1,800-student campus in Morris that would include local foods, according to Sandy Olson-Loy, vice chancellor of student affairs. “We were looking for ways to connect to agriculture,�? she said. “This is one of the ways we can connect.�?

UMM was the first of many area universities and colleges to seek locally grown foods for its food service program, according to Sodexho district manager, Don Kulick. Now many schools and corporate food service clients are seeking vendors of local, sustainable foods. The local foods movement needs to be market-based and could be, based on growing consumer demand, Congressman Peterson said. “There are more opportunities out there than there are resources to fill them.�?

Iowa county treats ag as economic development

2007-04-18T15:10:05Z

MORRIS - The heritage of Woodbury County, Iowa, is built on agriculture and county officials are making policies and fostering future economic development to keep agriculture growing in the county.
Faced with declining population and the loss of the farmers, Woodbury County has taken an active role in promoting the use of local foods and in fostering organic farming, according to Rob Marqusee, director of rural economic development.
"We are agriculture, we have to do what is agriculture-related to succeed in our county" Marqusee said
Monday during a presentation. Marqusee was one of several speakers at the University of Minnesota-Morris as part of a local foods conference.
The county economic development office still works with folks who want to open businesses and shopping centers, but also works with small farmers and understands that business retention starts with small farms on the brink, Marqusee said.
The county efforts began with a June 2005 decision to create mandatory local food purchasing policy for the county jail, juvenile detention and work release programs. The county spends $300,000 annually on food and has not experienced an increase in food costs with the local purchases, Marqusee said.
Cherokee County in Iowa has adopted a similar policy, and two other counties are considering adopting the policy, making a four-county consortium that will be able to promote local foods, Marqusee said. '
Other actions to promote local foods are numerous:
* The county is also working with the local chamber of commerce to promote Woodbury County as the "capital of organic food processing."
* A 100 percent tax rebate is offered to farmers wanting to convert from conventional to organic production The county's Web site includes an exchange to - connect farmers seeking land to farm or offering land for organic farming.
* A cooperative has been formed to.market locally produced meat, fruits, vegetables and baked goods. The cooperative is growing, from 12 producers last year to 30 this year. The cooperative has its own store and has connected with the Whole Foods Market in Omaha, Neb., as a market for those goods.
* Fiona's Firehouse Bistro, a local-organ¬ic restaurant, has opened in a renovated fire hall in Sioux City, Iowa. The restaurant uses at least 80 percent local ingredients, Marqusee said.
* Other accomplishments include, that the start of an organic growing course of study at a local community college; a yearly, organic growers conference and establishment of a farmland preservation area around Sioux City.
Get more information about Woodbury County online at www.woodbury-ia.com.

Source: West Central Tribune - Willmar, Minn., By Gretchen Schlosser gretchens @wctrib. com

Carol Ford's Winter CSA is an inspiration

2007-04-17T17:27:10Z

Carol Ford, aka Garden Goddess, provided an inspriring vision for winter greens. The passive solar greenhouse she tends provides vegetables for 10 families through the winter months when fresh greens are a real treat.

Welcome to Aggregation and Distribution

2007-04-17T16:35:49Z

One of the key issues for local food systems is to create an aggregation and distribution system that works effectively for farmers and allows institutional and retailers to access relaible supply of product.

Welcome to the Home Grown Economy Blog

2007-04-13T23:59:34Z

On April 2, 2007, Congressman Collin Peterson hosted the Home Grown Economy workshop at University of Minnesota Morris. Proceedings of the conference are posted at http://www.morris.umn.edu/HomeGrownEconomy
This blog is an on-going dialog on several key components of community-based food systems in Minnesota.

See www.localfoods.umn.edu for a directory of local food producers, processors, retailers and caterers.