FIELD TO FAMILY REPORT

Gary Huber and Robert Karp

USDA SARE Grant to Support Workshops on Local Food Systems

The PFI Field to Family Project will receive a North Central SARE Professional Development Program grant to organize five one-day training workshops across the state on local food systems and direct marketing. A training manual will be created to support these workshops and a four-page Extension publication will also be developed, printed and distributed statewide. Producers and organizers of successful projects in the region, including those funded by NC SARE, will also present at the workshops.

The target audiences for these training sessions and materials will be Cooperative Extension and USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) staff, along with a variety of other key agricultural professionals. Such professionals could be community college instructors in agriculture and culinary arts, economic development professionals, Farm Service Agency staff, Rural Development Council members, community organizers, farmers, retailers, distributors and processors, as well as consumer group representatives, and other non-profit staff.

The objectives of this project are to:

• increase knowledge and understanding of local food system concepts and direct marketing strategies by Extension, NRCS staff and other key agriculture professionals;
• increase the capacity and commitment of Cooperative Extension Service staff, NRCS staff and other key agriculture professionals to engage in partnerships and projects that support local food systems and direct marketing efforts;
• develop an effective local food systems training model and manual that can be replicated for use in other states in the North Central Region;
• share knowledge and experiences gained from existing direct marketing and local food system projects, including those that have been funded by NC SARE.

Other groups partnering with PFI on these training workshops include ISU Extension, the Iowa Network for Community Agriculture (INCA), ISU Department of Sociology, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture. For more information please contact Robert Karp at 515-232-5649.

Report Available on Food System Interviews

Part of a PFI project being funded by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture involved a series of personal interviews with contacts among food system participants. The purpose of these interviews was to determine the potential for grocery store and institutional markets to use local foods. Contacts interviewed represented industry associations, restaurants, grocery stores, food distributors and brokers, hospitals, and hotel/conference centers. A report describing the results of these interviews is now available. To request a copy, please call the PFI Field to Family office at 515-232-5649.

Brokering Effort Takes Step Toward Self-Sufficiency

PFI’s brokering work - which involves helping local conference centers find local foods for meals served to clients - has taken a step toward becoming self-sufficient. One component that has been put in place is a fee system for the farmers involved. Farmers who want to use PFI to help sell their foods to these conference centers must join PFI, pay an annual fee of $10, and remit 5% of gross sales made through PFI back to the organization. The reaction to this system has for the most part been positive - the farmers involved agree that there is value to this service, and they also agree that it is appropriate that they help pay for the service. So far, about fifteen producers have formally signed up to be part of the supply network. If you are interested in learning more about what is involved, please call Gary Huber at 515-232-5649.

Karp Named to Iowa Food Policy Council