Overview

What is a local food system?
It takes more than some fertile land and interested shoppers to make local food a success. Farmers need education and training about how to grow the high quality food that local consumers look for, and then they will need to know how to process the food and market it to various entities. They also need local businesses and networks to buy, sell and trade supplies.

Once crops are grown and harvested, they need to be shipped to market. Some farmers do their own shipping, while others depend on trucking companies. If local items are bound for the grocery store, they may make a stop at a local distribution center first. All the people and steps it takes to get food to market make up a local food system. That is why this initiative is very complex. The following tabs attempt to break down the various areas that a local foods producer may need. Please advance to the next tabs...