Washington State Food Hub Connects Small Growers to Large Buyers, Satisfying Demand for Local Food

The demand for local food continues to grow, often faster than small growers and infrastructure can keep up. That’s why the work of the Northwest Agriculture Business Center (NABC) is vital in connecting small farmers to big business in Northwest Washington State.

Founded in 2006, NABC is the brainchild of a group of farmers and politicians who noticed a gap in the small business assistance market. Independent growers running small farms are first and foremost farmers. Brand development, marketing, establishing a customer base and utilizing accounting technology are often unfamiliar and time consuming aspects of the small farm business. NABC provides assistance in these and other areas helping to keep small farms viable. Read More

Through Local Sourcing and Hydroponic Towers, Urban Farmer Delivers Fresh Produce to South Florida

Vertical growing systems that The Urban Farmer organization placed on a 1-acre lot of industrial property in Broward County. Photo Credit: Urban Farmer.

In many urban areas across the nation, access to fresh, locally grown and produced food is difficult to come by, and South Florida is no exception. Seeing an opportunity to address challenges to local food availability in this area, The Urban Farmer, a Pompano Beach, Fla.-based organization that grows and sources locally grown food, was launched to meet the demands of South Florida residents for locally and sustainably grown food.  While The Urban Farmer is still in startup mode, it’s garnering support and keeping afloat because of its founders’ love of educating – and feeding – Floridians awesome, local produce.

I recently got in touch with Stephen Hill, a principal at The Urban Farmer, to find out how and why the organization was founded, how Urban Farmer serves Florida and what the organization has planned for the 2013 season. Read More

Nevada Farmer Employs Sustainable Small Farm Business Model that Brings Customers and Profit to Her

Pigs in the

Wendy Baroli is a happy farmer. It even says so in her email signature. She’s happy for many reasons including a productive, profitable small farm, a penchant for heritage breeds and her healthy contribution to the planet. But what she seems most happy about is her small farm business model that brings the customers to her, reduces overheads and provides clients a custom farming experience that’s become a way of life.

Baroli comes from a family of farmers, Italian immigrants that farmed organically because they were too poor to do otherwise, but never planned on actually being a farmer. In fact, politician seemed more up her alley. But then she discovered the truth about politics: there’s only so much you can do from the sidelines. She wanted to be the change. Read More

Oregon Startup Links Local Farms to Local Folks with Competitively Priced Bounty of Fresh Food

Elizabeth Weigand (2nd from left), owner of Agricultural Connections, and volunteer crew putting together a produce basket.

Shopping at Farmers Markets or participating in the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) system of picking up weekly produce boxes from a local farm are both great ways to enjoy locally grown produce. But once the growing season is over, generally, so are the Farmers Markets and the CSAs. So, how can people buy local produce and other farm products year-round? From out of this dilemma, the seed for a new business idea was planted.

In 2009, Andrew Adams saw the need in his Bend, OR community to get local, organic foods during the “off season.” So, he decided to fill that niche. He believed that if he created a link between local farms and local folks, people could be supplied with a year-round bounty of fresh, organic foods. Out of this idea, grew Agricultural Connections (AC). Read More

USDA Announces $4.5M in Grants for 68 Farm to School Projects Across the Country

News Release – WASHINGTON, Nov. 14, 2012 – Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan today announced more than $4.5 million in grants for 68 projects, spanning 37 states and the District of Columbia, to connect school cafeterias with local agricultural producers. Read More

Online Social Marketplace Helps Communities Hungry for Farm Fresh Food Connect to Local Farmers

Started more than a year ago by Cousins William and Nathaniel Trienens along with another cofounder, lead developer Gabriel Odess-Gillett, CitySprout is an online social marketplace that was developed to allow communities without easy access to locally grown food, or the population to support a CSA, to more easily connect with local farmers.

The company’s communications director Jesse Mayhew explained that the idea behind CitySprout originated in a discussion about Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) between William and a Westport, New York, farmer friend in Lake Champlain where Trienens grew up. Read More

Produce Delivery Service Aggregates Farmers Market Online for Urban Consumers

Meet the future of retail grocery shopping: SPUD, which stands for Sustainable Produce Urban Delivery. The company provides you with a means to buy organic, locally sourced, guaranteed-tasty, weekly groceries, without adding a microgram to your carbon footprint.

It’s like your local Farmers Market pulls up stakes and sets up camp on your front lawn, except that you only have to glance at your computer to make your selections, and everything might cost a little bit less. No drive to a crowded market, no aimless search for that elusive parking spot, Read More

New Hampshire Farm to School Report: More Farms Bringing Greater Variety to NH Schools

A new survey from New Hampshire Farm to School, a statewide organization housed at the University of New Hampshire, found that the number of New Hampshire farmers providing food to local schools has tripled in the past three years and the variety of food they’re offering has increased. Credit: New Hampshire Farm to School

News Release – DURHAM, N.H. – Eating local is not just for foodies and high-end restaurants: in New Hampshire, school kids are increasingly getting into the act. A new survey from New Hampshire Farm to School found that the number of New Hampshire farmers providing food to local schools has tripled in the past three years and the variety of food they’re offering has increased.

The report, released today, highlights trends and findings from three years (2009, 2010, 2011) of surveys of New Hampshire farmers and school food service directors conducted by New Hampshire Farm to School (NHFTS).

“For the farmers, this provides another market for them to sell their produce,” says Stacey Purslow, program coordinator for NHFTS, a statewide organization that is housed within the University of New Hampshire’s Sustainability Institute. “And for the schools, it’s an opportunity to get fresh and local produce. Buying directly from the farmer, there’s a freshness and flavor difference. The food tastes better.” Purslow adds that better tasting fruits and vegetables are more likely to pass muster with students. Read More

L.A.-based Tender Greens Takes Action in Community, Readies Launch of Sustainable Life Project

In addition to providing a haven for economical foodies in southern California, quick casual restaurant Tender Greens is working to play another important role in the community through its Sustainable Life Project (SLP). Starting in just a couple of weeks, SLP will train groups of young adults transitioning out of foster care in fields ranging from agriculture to culinary arts. The program aims to cultivate in them an “appreciation not only for the taste of organic produce, but also in its potential as a career path,” by helping participants develop the interest, skills and confidence to successfully pursue higher education or careers related to sustainable food. Read More

Emphasizing Local Farm Ingredients, Craft of Cooking, Fast-Growing SoCal Restaurant Chain Stays True to Roots

For Erik Oberholtzer, cooking and eating high quality, local, sustainably produced foods is “part of his DNA.” Oberholtzer co-founded Tender Greens, a rapidly-growing “slow food done fast” restaurant chain that serves affordable, sustainable, delicious meals across southern California. With big plans for growth in the works, Tender Greens faces the difficult, but exciting challenge of staying true to its roots while expanding across the state.

After culinary school and an impressive career as an executive chef at luxury resorts in Hawaii and San Francisco, Oberholtzer ended up in Los Angeles, where he met business partners Matt Lyman and David Dressler. The three of them decided it was time to venture out on their own – and they were very aware of a niche that needed filling.

“Tender Greens was a reaction to the lack of really good affordable causal options in Santa Monica,” says Oberholtzer. Read More