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“Local Foods” initiative as Economic Development
October 30th, 2008 by Mike Knutson
Can a local foods initiative serve as an economic development strategy for a rural community? In other words, can it create jobs and build wealth for members of a community?
For some time now, I’ve advocated that it can. Now, an article in the New York Times shows us how.
The article highlights a local foods initiative in Hardwick, VT, a rural community of approximately 3,000 in the state’s northeast corner. It’s estimated that their efforts have already produced 75-100 jobs in recent years. That’s nothing to sneeze at in a community their size!
The driving force for the initiative comes from several of the entrepreneurs as well as the Center for an Agricultural Economy, a non-profit established in 2004. Their effort seeks to “engage agricultural leaders in the emerging 21st century food system to build capacity and inspire the public in supporting and implementing this system.”
Like all good stories, several themes stand out:
- They established a local foods restaurant with local investors. Over 50 community members invested in the restaurant. This means investors can eat food grown from their neighbors’ businesses or perhaps even their own.
- They have built a local foods network. This network enables business owners to share problems and solutions. At times, they even share facilities and lend each other money.
- And most impressively, they’ve created an organization — The Center for an Agricultural Economy – capable of assisting the further development of a sustainable local foods system.
People are generally unaware of the complex system our food ‘travels’ through to end up on our plates. Whether we’re talking about traditional agriculture or local foods production, our food system is made of many complex parts including: production, distribution, markets, finance, and education. If any part is weak or missing, the system quickly breaks down. In Hardwick, they’re making sure this doesn’t happen, which probably explains why they’ve succeeded at creating a significant number of jobs and businesses.
Hopefully, other rural communities will benefit from Harwick’s efforts.
Tags: Buy Local, Hardwick, local foods, Vermont
Posted in Agriculture, Economic Development, Rural | Comments (
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