Impressions from Interviews, by Category



Impressions on Market Channels, based on interviews: buying practices, requirements, and patterns for all local food channels and for each market channel

The general business skills and practices for local foods marketing are more like having a small business than those farms involved in growing commodities. Second, that an understanding of market channels – direct via farmers market vs wholesale to retail for example – may be important to long-term success. Third, I found that the buyers of local foods seem committed to working with farmers and to building strong and stable relationships that go beyond buying and selling. Fourth, there are some obvious opportunities in season-extension production (greenhouses, high tunnels), value-added processed foods, and other niche areas along with high value summer produce (eg heirloom tomatoes). This is all good news. This project will contribute added details on how the local foods markets work and can be a useful asset in helping farmers and organizations move into new opportunities.

Personal Skills Needed for Local Foods Farmers to Sell to Local Foods Buyers

a. Communication and responsiveness

Written communication is often preferred – easier to keep track of email than phone message; also, written invoices

In-person updates are sufficient for many buyers

Willingness to continually update buyers about crop status and timing (beginning / ending) is a key skill and much needed by buyers.

b. Reliability / dependability

Farmer must deliver product type, quality, and quantity as agreed to

Buyer is planning on this and must be apprised of any changes promptly

(This is true from the smallest restaurant to the largest wholesaler)

c. Courtesy and professionalism – relationship with buyers

Many buyers make a distinction between “professional” farmers versus hobby farmers and gardeners, saying the want to support people who are farming for a living. I read this as intention and investment, not size.

Appreciation of the buyers’ business activity and availability (ask best times to contact, etc)

Follow requirements for products, handling, delivery, boxes, etc

Be nice!

Be persistent at finding the right person and staying in touch

d. Business skills

How to find local buyers (eg. Local Harvest, other directories and lists)

How to research and approach prospective buyers?

How to prepare for first contact and giving information about the farm

Record keeping, invoices, taxes, etc.

Pricing for direct and wholesale buyers

How to manage accounts (eg. primary, secondary) for each crop

Liability insurance; crop insurance for specialty crops

Need for and access to capital for on-farm improvements (organic practices, fencing, etc)

Production and Handling Practices Needed for Local Foods Markets

a. Selection of crops / varieties for the farm: What can I grow well? What crops have market value? How about experimental or niche crops? Getting input from buyers on what is needed...

b. Making production practices more transparent, such as methods of pest control and use of chemicals. Many buyers look for “sustainable” practices and will want to visit the farm.

c. Good food safety practices of post-harvest handling to promote food safety. If not GAP certified, understand the goals of this program and seek those goals

d. Post-harvest handling including prompt cooling from field heat

e. Sorting and grading for consistency needed for buyers, not necessarily USDA grade but get a sense of grading that is needed for each buyer

f. Packaging that makes it easy for the buyer to handle products; this includes appropriate box sizes, amounts per box; amounts per bunch

g. For processed foods, use of a certified commercial kitchen or have a certified kitchen at home; for meat, have it processed in a federal or state inspected slaughterhouse; may need a meat-handlers license to do value-added meat production. Working with extension and other local resources as needed.

Opportunities

a. Certain products: goat cheese; beef and pork; some vegetables such as broccoli, celery (must be hard to grow); regular potatoes and onions; berries, peaches, apples and other fruit – very desirable, specialties desserts; Asparagus is “sold like futures” according to one chef.

b. Shoulder season crops (spring and fall) through the use of structures or production strategies, greenhouse tomatoes and greens are of high interest

c. Value-added, processed foods that can be sold during shoulder season and even in winter, such as jams, jellies

d. Honey is an important crop for some buyers

e. A diverse array of products, types of products, and buyers is the best strategy in the local foods market.

I. Impressions of Market Channel

A. Specialty Distributors and Brokers (local, to households or businesses) 9 total

Bread Riot, Rowan County #5

Downeast Connect, Columbus Co and area #10

Feast Down East, Wilmington #16

Madison Farms, Madison Co #11

Piedmont Local Foods, Rockingham Co #2

Pilot Mountain Pride, Surry Co and NW #21

Produce Box, Wake/Johnson / statewide #12

Sandhills Farm to Table Co-Op, Moore County # 9

Mint Market, Durham # 29

Interest in Local: High; these organizations work with 100% local items

Description: These are businesses, nonprofits, and co-ops who were created specifically to supply local products. Some of these sell primarily or exclusively to households while a few others (Madison Farms and Pilot Mountain Pride) sell primarily to business clients.

Definition of local: Often a relatively small area, often a county or county plus border counties (even if these go into Virginia). Produce Box is the only one which sources state-wide, though they have many near-by sources.

How it works: Specialty distributors – many more accurately brokers – connect farmers with local foods buyers including consumers. These companies establish a brand for local food and then aggregate products of many farmers to sell to households or companies interested in local food and other products. All of the products come directly from farmers, though the two largest organizations, Produce Box and Sandhills Farm2Table purchase from the wholesale distributor Eastern Carolina Organics on occasion; Product Box occasionally buys from Piedmont Local Food.

For several of these, sales are processed online. Farmers submit what they have available, managers coordinate what they are interested in and then buyers are able to choose what they want with an online order. Products are dropped off at a central location and then re-boxed for orders. Some organizations deliver and others have a CSA-like set of locations for pick-up. Farmers are paid by the organization. An exception are Madison Farms and Pilot Mountain Pride, which handle orders by phone and email as they are aggregating for fewer, larger customers.

Management vision and skill is extremely important in these small companies with limited staff. It probably determines success or failure as to whether the organization has capable and experienced management.

Philosophy: These organizations have a distinctive philosophy based on “neighbors feeding neighbors” and “local foods systems.” Also, they are focused on connecting local farmers with expanded markets, more income, and reduced risk. All are working to shift or expand production of high value products and respond to the increasing demand for local items.

Relationship with Farmers: These organizations work very closely with farmers and want farmers who are interested in being part of the organization, including by support of the philosophy. This includes a willingness to work in partnership with the management, to try new things, and to evolve with markets. According to three buyers, an ‘entrepreneurial’ attitude is in contrast with some of the older farmers who relied on tobacco and did not have to be responsive to buyers’ needs.

Specialty distributors are among the most willing to work with very small and beginning farmers. They are willing to train farmers in several areas, including computer skills (must be able to work with online ordering, posting information about their farm and products, etc) and in learning to follow through with commitments on product quality, quantity, and delivery deadlines. Transparency in sourcing is highly significant for these organizations. Almost all require liability insurance or co-insure farmers.

Obstacles: Demand outpaces supply. More farmers are needed. In addition, these are noted: (1) Lack of supply of high value items, such as fruits; (2) seasonal limitations mean that more products are needed for fall and winter ‘shoulder seasons’ (want more products in the fall and winter, necessarily processed foods or greenhouse greens, etc) (3) Want to deal with larger customers such as restaurants who might be able to absorb occasional higher volumes OR as a way to scale up. Madison Farms refers to the need for stable partnerships amid market evolution, finding high value products that then creating a stable buying relationship. (4) These are among the easiest organizations to work with, yet they talk about the importance of the relationships and how farmers must ‘buy into’ the philosophy of the organization and support it.

Strengths: All of these companies / organizations are increasing in demand for their products. The sale of 100% local products creates a strong and clear brand. By continually educating their consumers in the value and quality of local foods, they are building a long-term commitment to this market. Also, they work closely with individual farmer and coach in production and in business skills. They plan to do this and are willing to do this.

Sub groups: Downeast Connect, Feast Down East, Piedmont Local Foods have a similar structure and are fairly small. Produce Box is an LLC and sources from the widest geographic area. Its delivery system is unique and it also has targeted urban neighborhood buyers. Sandhills is a Co-op and has membership who provide some of the labor though it has a paid, professional staff as well.

Pilot Mountain Pride and Madison Farms have the most experience selling to distributors and grocers and have a very strong extension partnership.

There are two outlier group. First is Bread Riot because so very tiny and also because it is as much advocacy group as food provider. Second is Mint Market which is a start-up specialty broker linking up farmers with local chefs in the Durham area. The Mint Market website makes it possible for farmers to sell to more than one chef and for chefs to buy from local farmers with an easy, online transaction. The owner described it as a ‘software company’ and the website explains that the business goal is address the reality that it’s difficult for buyers to find entry into local foods suppliers, so Mint will “take the chaos out of local foods.”

Advantages for Farmers: They are able to learn from managers who can coach them into selling. Rules are spelled out and mission is spelled out too. Things are very clear and the same for everyone.

Farmers are able to sell to an organization/ company which then creates more markets, without farmers doing the marketing themselves. Farmers work as a group to build up their shared opportunities. They can work together.

Because specialty distributors sell 100% local, they are actively looking for more vendors especially those who can produce special, high value items.

Some added attention is brought to the farm – farmers strengthen the organization’s brand – so have to be comfortable presenting own farm though much less personal ‘sales’ and labor than would be required at farmers markets or selling to restaurants. This is probably a good introduction step for beginning farmers who can then diversify and add other markets as well.

B. Wholesale Distributors 5/6

Eastern Carolina Organics (produce) # 6

Farmhand Foods, (meat) #20

Honeycutt Produce, Chadburn (produce) # 3

Ward Produce, Raleigh (produce) #26

Albert’s Organics, SE District, Charlotte # 40

Definition of Local: Many use state as the definition, while others use a region that includes neighboring states. Some use mileage instead, especially those which have outlets near to other states’ boundaries.

Description: This is a very broad category of businesses who purchase items to resell to retailers, restaurants, and institutions (eg. schools, hospitals, prisons).

Those which specialize in supplying restaurants are called Food Service companies (see below). All wholesale distributors in this group source nationally and often internationally with the exception of two: Eastern Carolina Organics and Farmhand Foods, both of which provide close to 100% state-sourced products with the rest coming from either SC or VA.

The goal of a successful wholesale distributor is to provide consistent, predictable, even uniform high quality food, supplied in a steady quantity, over time. To accomplish this, wholesalers develop a supply system which is broad in what it can supply. The scale can be very large with crops sourced in several different places, aggregated, and then distributed to many different areas. The concept of buying local – with its intrinsic seasonality, variability, and geographic definition – may defy the logistics of many wholesalers. It requires that the sourcing identity be preserved and then shared with the customers who are interested. So companies are not likely to initiate such a logistical change unless their customers are demanding of it or if there is a sizeable opportunity.

Interest in Local: Variable from High (ECO and Farmhand) to Medium to Low, at least based on current practices. Many companies source crops in NC (especially sweet potatoes, melons, cabbage, collards) but these are not often labeled as local; they may still provide an opportunity for farmers in the general wholesale market even if it is not the “local foods” market.

What ECO and Farmhand are doing is very much scaling up based on 100% local suppliers and increasing the number of those suppliers, so they are bringing in newer and larger suppliers to the marketplace. Local is the reason for their existence.

At the same time, we have the work of the traditional, Raleigh-based wholesalers / food service companies which are taking a different approach. Those interviewed affirmed the interest in local product and how much it has grown in the past few years. They would like to source and identify local products more if it works for them logistically. With smaller, state-wide or regional territories, they might find it workable IF they have capable suppliers of sufficient size. They don’t have the capacity to necessarily train those folks, though. This is a relly important area to watch.

Then there are the huge national suppliers such as L&M and Lippman. For these companies, local markets have a different definition, which is logistical. Product that is purchased in a state can be managed so that it stays in that state for a local designation rather than being sent to another state. In fact, L&M offers this as a service to others, to consolidate and manage logistics for local market demands. L&M is certainly exploring this kind of participation and willing (to some degree) to look at how it can do more. Plus, L&M is involved in the East Coast Broccoli project out of Cornell, consulting in the area of efficient logistics. It’s similar to Foster-Caviness’ work with its huge produce coop (based in CA) which will similarly manage supply streams so as to keep more product within a certain region – in response to interest from their chain restaurant clients for local food. I think this is very interesting. Both L&M and Foster-Caviness are spotlighting farmers on their websites to put a face on the food.

This is probably similar to Albert’s Organics, which is a division of United Natural Foods (biggest broadline supplier to Whole Foods etc). It Is now managing logistics to keep some of its supply stream closer to origin. It is continually recruiting more and more organic farmers, selling organic products nationally, and then also managing some of those products as a ‘local’ option, all based on their warehouse system nationally.

So – I think that even with this limited number of interviews, that we have learned something about the wholesalers and food service channels. Maybe what we are seeing are three ways that local food markets are changing / expanding opportunities for farmers. It may be possible to frame these as a bottom-up (ECO) and reaching out (Ford’s, etc, wanting a larger and more reliable local supply) and then a top-down / logistical approach (L&M) which does not add new local supply but aims to sell some of it closer to origin. I was not able yet to interview Mr. Creel at L&M but I will try to get that done or we can do in the future.

How it works: Farmers supply based on a specifically agreed to quantity of a specifically agreed to crops or products. Some of these items are sold as retail-ready (ie. they are clean, boxed, and ready to go on a retail shelf) while others fit the different specifications of restaurants. The word specifications is significant; more than any other category, wholesale buyers want not just certain things but prepared and packaged in a precise way. The scale is large and the pace is fast.

Relationship with farmers: Wholesalers give farmers a chance to sell without having to do direct marketing themselves. These buyers may provide the reliable outlet for much more volume of a product than a farmer would be able to sell on his or her own. Wholesalers also talk about relationships -- good relationships lead to decades-long marketing relationships. Wholesalers are looking for farmers who are willing to buy into their system, to deliver quality goods, and to be completely reliable. Communication and Reliability, as well as precise following of requirements are required.

Strengths: This can be one of the most straightforward market channels, especially if wholesalers can purchase more than one crop, as compared to building relationships with several different restaurants and retailers. It offers a more predictable market as well.

Obstacles: Some farmers will chafe at receiving a wholesale price rather than a retail price and do not understand the value of a wholesale relationship. Also, they may struggle with the exacting food safety program and other requirements. GAP and liability coverage generally required. Larger scale is required. Farmers may be growing larger quantities of fewer crops.

It can be difficult to break into a wholesale company, even to fine the right person to speak with, so persistence and professionalism are required. Even if the owner of the company is interested in the idea of local purchasing, this may not have come through to the field representatives. With the market expansion of local, however, there will be more opportunities.

C. Food Service

Foster Caviness, Greensboro #23 4/4

Bon Appetit / Compass – Duke #28

Fresh Point / Chris Woodring #32

Ford Produce, Raleigh (produce) #39

Interest in Local: Variable from High to Low

Description: This is a closely-related category to wholesale distribution. Food service distributors are those who sell to restaurants and other companies serving food in public – this can include schools and hospitals, prisons, colleges and universities, to restaurants (high-end, white table cloth restaurants to small diners), to eating establishments at entertainment venues, museums and country clubs. The hot dog stand at a baseball stadium is supplied by a food service company. Some companies specialize in one kind of product, such as produce, while others specialize in providing a variety of products to a certain type of business, such as college and university dining systems.

Food service is often divided into to “commercial” which are restaurants and other businesses, and “institutional” (or non-commercial) which includes public institutions such as schools, hospitals, nursing homes, prisons. Institutional food service often has more specific purchasing guidelines and may have price pressures, but it is attractive due to constancy of programs despite economic ups and downs. One change that is relevant is the shifting requirements for schools which mean more fruits and vegetables must be served; for example, juice no longer counts as a serving of fruit/vegetable.

Food service distributors are also divided according to whether they are ‘broadline’ that is deliver everything for a certain type of restaurant vs a specialty distributor which handles only produce, only meat or dairy, or only frozen foods.

Another way that food service varies is aspect of food preparation that is delivered. Increasingly, there are more ready-to-cook and ready-to-heat products so that the restaurants only heat and serve, in contrast to the provision of ingredients which are then prepared on site at a full service restaurant. In schools for example, there is less space / staff / equipment to prepare foods so more are ready to heat, ready to eat rather than vegetables to be washed and prepared.

[See article: A new prescription for the local food movement by Kendra Klein, The Nation, 10/12/12 for some of the difficulty in providing local foods to the institutional markets.

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How it works: Many food service providers work very much like distributors, contracting for specific crops / quantities to be delivered according to a specific schedule. Packaging is different than for retail, as the company may wash, prepare, and even cut items prior to delivery.

Strengths: Thjs is an important area to explore, especially to find out what types of food service are most engaged with local foods. Some of these may be large-scale and very interested in local food, such as colleges and universities, and some corporations and high-end restaurants.

Obstacles: It is hard to find the access points; may have more luck looking at local institutions and restaurants and asking for names / contacts of their food service providers. The food safety programs are exacting and of paramount importance to these buyers.

One former chef, now working at a specialty distributor, noted that most chefs don’t care where something has come from; they care about the quality. Food service companies are likely to have only a subset of customers who are particularly interested.

Examples: Three local companies are highly engaged with local foods farmers due to the demands from their customers at universities and white table cloth restaurants. One is Bon Appetit, which is a contracted catering food service company serving Duke University among other customers. Contracted catering means that the company sets up and manages an on-site restaurant, yet unlike most restaurant, it may serve thousands of meals per day. So it has the chef-driven philosophy of a restaurant yet the scale of food service. Bon Appetit’s Farm to Fork program provides a market for local farmers that celebrates local, plus diversity and quality of crops. It is also moving into value-added items. BA even buys from the Duke campus farm. Michael Aquaro, District Manager based in Durham, writes on the company website: “Part of the fun of working here is getting involved in the local communities. When we tour local farms and meet the families, we see the direct impact on the community of the money we spend buying locally. That’s what it’s all about to me.”

FreshPoint, the produce subsidiary of Sysco, has UNC as a customer and notes in our interview the generational change that has occurred in the past six years. The students are committed to local purchasing and this commitment is being handed down to each new class of students. Worth noting is that both of these companies buy extensively from ECO, the local / produce wholesaler listed above.

Finally, Foster-Caviness, based in Greensboro, lists sustainability as one of its values and would like to move more in that direction. Sees Local as part of it and would like to do more. It’s not clear how much they do now. Paul Lieb the owner is very interested in innovations in composting and in transportation. Their clients are primarily chain restaurants.

D. Government Buyers – NC Farm to School Program

Interest in Local: High – it is the purpose of the program.

Description: The NCDA North Carolina Farm to School Program is a collaboration of the Marketing and Food Distribution Divisions. The NCDA works with an Advisory Board, including five Child Nutrition Directors from across the state, to select crops that schools would like to purchase during the school year (August to June) and select any trial products for the year. NCDA then facilitates the bidding process to supply each quarter’s needs, with the Advisory Council selecting the bid winner with price as the most significant factor. The crop composition changes with the season.

The farmer group that wins the bid will work together to pack and prepare the orders to be picked up at three sites, trucked to NCDA warehouses, and then sorted into orders which are then delivered on a 23 week schedule using NCDA Food Distribution trucks. There is now a point of sale inspection at the farms before the produce is picked up to assure quality. Schools may opt to participate and can then order as they wish during the school year. School districts vary in how their bid processes work and what their bid thresholds are; for example, schools may be able to purchase blueberries directly from a farmer if the value is below a threshold. In 2012, 85 school districts participated in the program.

There are some built-in limitations to the program, chiefly the funding levels for child nutrition programs; the federal requirements for fruit and vegetable amounts in each meal and methods of preparation (eg. no sweet potato fries); and the capacity of school kitchens to deal with fresh produce, including refrigeration, storage, preparation areas, and staff time. In addition, fresh produce costs more than processed, frozen produce. It is often less expensive to purchase produce from a wholesaler. Alternatively, some schools may purchase produce directly from local farmers.

Requirements for farmers include GAP or other third party audits, $2 million of liability insurance, membership in the Goodness Grows in NC program, and I think also membership in the NC Farm to School Cooperative, which is a group of farmers who join together to submit bids that will cover all the crops of interest. The Cooperative has a board of seven members.

Anyone can make a bid, however, as long as these basic requirements are met and that all of the crops required for a quarter can be supplied at the amounts needed. As an example, in the final quarter of 2012, 64,000 pounds of sweet potatoes were purchased by the schools.

For more information about grower participation, contact Tommy Fleetwood in NCDA Marketing at 252-331-5773 and for more information about the NCDA-Child Nutrition partnership, contact Heather Barnes, also in Marketing, at 919-707-3127

Strengths: Purchase of a quantity of produce, a predictable market. Individual growers do participate, including some farmers who also supply Feast DownEast and Madison Farms.

Obstacles: Prices must be bid ahead and quantities are required. Must be GAP certified and carry liability insurance. Probably not cost-effective for small farmers.

E. Retailers – Supermarkets and Grocery Chains

Carlie C’s IGA, Dunn, eastern NC # 7 6/6

Whole Foods, statewide/region # 8

Ingles Grocery, Black Mountain #24

Lowe’s, Winston-Salem #22

The Fresh Market (TFM), Greensboro #25

Farm Fresh, VA Beach (buys from NE NC) #37

Retailers’ interest in local foods may be more transparent than in other market channels. Retailers shelves already identify products and those companies interested in local can add a designation of origin where it is appropriate.

Retailers and coop retailers are selling foods to be prepared at home. The foods have to look good and healthy. The standards of appearance, quality, and consistency are much different than at the farmers market, which may allow a more ‘rustic’ feel as a sign of authenticity. This is also in comparison to selling to a chef, where it is only the chef who must be impressed. These products must look ready to go to the produce buyer and to consumers – and they must look about as good as the other products in the store. Their value is in freshness, taste, and the philosophy of buying to support local farmers.

Definition of Local: Variable, usually it is based on mileage relative to store locations even if these cross state lines. Sometimes a regional focus, such as Ingles in Western NC.

Relationships with Farmers: Retailers talk about having to train farmers in quality, volume and grading issues, but they also talk about issues of pricing. Retailers buy at a wholesale price which is necessarily lower than the retail prices received at farmers market prices or from chefs. They have to train farmers to understand the value of a the wholesale relationship and may have problems when farmers divert products to a temporarily higher paying account rather than treat the retailers as a primary buyer.

How it works: The decision on local seems to be made from the top and resides especially in the Produce Director position, as produce is the type of product most easily purchased at sufficient volume. Volume is an issue as crops must be supplied in sufficient amounts during the season. Smaller volumes may be sold direct to stores, while larger volumes often move through a distribution center. Grading, that is consistency of sizes and shapes, is a potential issue in selling to retailers and with some crops (squash for example, not so much tomatoes).

Strengths, by each company: Ingles has a relatively compact region, even though 6 states and 250 miles. Compare to sprawling chains such as Earth Fare and The Fresh Market where stores are scattered among numerous states. Ingles’ geographic placement allows them to self-distribute much of their goods. It has also allowed them to be a sort of ‘deep’ chain, such as ownership of their own local dairy company which is bottled under their own label. Ingles has also been supported in going local by a very strong, geographically-based nonprofit Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, which has branded and certified a wide variety of players in local agriculture. Asheville is a hotbed of processed food production and Ingles is selling locally-made processed foods.

Lowe’s, a smaller chain, is also fairly compact with its NC/VA/SC stores. And it does have its own distribution partner in MDI. By some accounts, MDI is difficult to work with. Whole Foods is a large national chain that sources “local” everywhere through its regional system. Carlie C’s IGA is a tiny chain of just 15 stores located in eastern NC which does business with 100 farmers.

Obstacles: Getting in the door can be a challenge and this includes figuring out where to start. Also, understanding the direct to store vs selling to the entire chain may take some effort. GAP and liability insurance are usually required. Also, some retailers are simply not interested, either due to their pricing structure or to their logistics system or to their emphasis instead on organic product lines. For example, Earth Fare used to have a local foods program which was abandoned abruptly when the company changed ownership. It is now restarting a local program, but may find it a challenge with such a sprawling network of stores. Not clear what their intentions are.

F. Coop and Specialty Grocery Stores

Company Stores Market (Alamance Co Co-op) # 4 7/8

Bare Essentials Natural Market, Boone #27

Hendersonville Community Coop #30

Chatham Marketplace Coop, Pittsboro #31

Tidal Creek Co-op, Wilmington #33

Deep Roots Market, Greensboro #34

French Broad Co-op, Asheville #36

Coop retailers are very engaged in local sourcing and often mention it as part of their mission and vision – supporting local businesses and farmers. They use local products as a way to distinguish themselves and brand their coops to the community. They purchase all product categories and identify origin in the store. This is an important market, and NC has eight coops across the state.

Definition of local: Often by mileage though varies. Some are able to purchase super-local (ie by county) as well as regionally or state-wide (such as for seafood)

How it works: Retail as described above. The coops have the same obstacles as do the larger retail chains. They are smaller, with somewhat simpler logistics, and can do much more to accommodate farmer needs and supplies (ie don’t need as much volume). Depending on the product range, they may offer higher wholesale prices than do the major retailers.

Some coops have or are moving towards 100% organic produce, still want local but local and organic. Interesting to note that three (?) of the coops required farmers to sign an affidavit about their growing practices and even perhaps in place of organic certification. Others (eg Chatham Marketplace) favor local over organic and find that local-organic has a noticeably shorter shelf life.

Strengths: These businesses are receptive and eager to purchase from local farmers. They are able to accommodate a wide range of products and a wider range of volumes than are larger retailers. Some coops have restaurants or kitchens serving hot bar lunches that may provide an outlet for additional products in different amounts.

Obstacles: Size of stores, storage space may be an issue. Farmers have to understand wholesale pricing. Also, the quality issue is significant and farmers have to match standards of quality consistency and grading to some degree.

G. Restaurants

Green Sage, Asheville #17

Laurey’s, Asheville # 1

Market Place, Asheville #18

Acme Food and Beverage, Carrboro #15

Angelina’s, Pittsboro #13

Lucky 32, Greensboro #14

Manna, Wilmington #19

Little Hen, Holly Springs #38

Restaurants are celebrated as a significant type of local buyer, yet they vary widely, and these differences are quite relevant to their status as buying local foods. The restaurants interviewed were all highly engaged with local foods, but their comments showed some of the differences that exist:

-- Chef/Owner philosophy and restaurant identity – is local a part of this?

-- Size (includes size of kitchen, storage space and number of meals served/week),. Number of diners

-- Price, how expensive are the menu items?

-- Menu – is it relatively fixed for a few weeks at a time (or all the time) or is it flexible week to week? Where does the local food fit on the menu, as a staple or as a specialty? IE. how far out are chefs planning?

-- How formal or informal is their system? Sometimes informality can feel easier to enter, but it may in actuality be unpredictable, a disadvantage.

Interest in local: Variable, but probably either High or Low. There is not much middle ground; restaurants interested in local tend to be very interested while others find it not worthwhile. There is some suggestion that the white table cloth restaurants (higher end) and the super-local small restaurants hold the strongest interest. Yet even some chain restaurants are expressing interest.

Important to note that the restaurant market serves not only individual farmers but also wholesale and specialty distributors who are selling local. In eastern NC, ECO has a big following among chefs who do not or can’t manage the logistics of buying from many individual farmers.

Description: Farmers are selling ingredients to be prepared in the restaurant’s kitchen, so they have to work closely with a chef on what crops are available and ideally understand how they are going to be used.

Definition of Local: Variable and fluid. It is more of an idea than a definition. Some restaurants are able to buy their local food from within their own county; others say 100 miles; while the majority are looking at multiple counties or have a state-wide definition.

How it works: An interested chef will have certain hours / days when he or she is available to talk with farmers, either established suppliers or new prospects. At other times, the chef is busy and the kitchen is busy and so timing is critical at making contacts. Some chefs are able to receive items all the time while others will have a set schedule. They also differ in how they want the items delivered; a friend who is a practiced restaurant supplier says that it makes a difference to give though to how the items are going to be used so that when delivered they are clean, boxed properly (nothing smushed) and waste is minimized.

All restaurants buy from distributors / food service as well as from farmers. EG Green Sage uses 60 pounds of sweet potatoes a week year-around, can’t get that much locally so will commit to a distributor who can deliver that. Will buy local for things that are not needed in so much quantity or are used differently. Local probably not enough to supply a staple for menu year-around and because restaurant has to commit to that with a distributor who can, won’t be buying small amounts of sweet potatoes. Lucky 32 also mentioned sweet potatoes.

Huge restaurants may can absorb big quantities but if menu does not change much, won’t have a need for it

Local foods chefs like to visit farms. They like “sustainable” practices but don’t have as strict requirements and are much more hands-off than are wholesalers about details. They want food that consistently tastes delicious and is very fresh. They like to know the history of a farm and are really engaged with the whole ‘farm to fork’ idea. At the same time, they are exacting in their own way, and it is not always articulated.

Relationship with Farmers: Depends on the owner / chefs. Chefs want reliable suppliers who high quality, consistent items. They also need regular communication about when new crops will be coming in and when crops will be ending so that they can plan their menus. Written information is much easier to work with given the busy pace of the chefs’ lives. Plus it can be easily forwarded back and forth among colleagues. The information most desired is the progress of crops, what is beginning, what is ending and when.

This is perhaps the most relationship-driven market channel. Chefs really rely on and trust their proven suppliers and are often willing to offer a sustained commitment, a long-term journey as one phrased it. There can be a true respect and appreciation for those farmers who are willing to learn and work in a collaborative spirit (not unlike buying into the philosophy of a specialty distributor). Invoices should be written!

Strengths: Ability to provide a variety of crops and to improvise in small amounts. Farmers are able to sell to chefs at a retail price. Proven products can make a restaurant’s reputation and are much appreciated. Find out what the restaurant needs the most and be good at that.

Obstacles: Dependent upon owner / chef’s interests for menu. This can change. Meat = “center of the plate” and very important. Chicken does not work but beef and pork work well and are important products. Want seasonal items at the same time that others do, volume unpredictable. Farmers have to be own marketers to restaurants, have to negotiate quality and pricing issues. No written instructions, have to figure it out through communication and willingness to learn. Farmers have to be able to be persistent, to ask questions, to take criticism and come back.

Some products work better than others. Chicken does not work in the restaurant market because the price of processing is high and the final products is more expensive than they can charge their diners, who are accustomed to chicken being a ‘cheap’ food. So chicken is purchased from national, specialty distributors. But beef and pork do work and highly valued.

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