RECONNECTION - Relu



Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship 2006

Frances Rowe

RECONNECTION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND LESSONS LEARNED

Fresh look at the UK – and the North East

Thanks to my Fellowship, I have been able to go on a journey - literally, professionally and personally. That journey allowed me to see from a different perspective and to apply what I learned to local food development in the North East of England.

I looked into a variety of reconnections, from farmers’ markets and community supported agriculture, to co-operatives, retailers, distributors and processors. I saw many examples of reconnection, operating at a variety of different scales. I met researchers, policy-makers and practitioners, talked to farmers, community activists and chefs.

For a while after I returned, I felt overwhelmed by the density and richness of local food activity that I had found in the States, an impression made more forceful by its unexpectedness. Back home, things felt drab by comparison - it all seemed brighter and better there, somehow. Of course, it isn’t!

There are similarities and differences between what I found in the USA, and the region of the UK where I live and work. Through this better understanding, there are pointers to future action. As a result of the journey, I can see more clearly the change that is starting to unfold, and some of the opportunities that are presenting themselves. I hope that this better understanding will provide a basis for further action and learning.

Differences and Similarities

Differences

Policy

In the UK we now have a progressive policy for agriculture that should equip farming for a different kind of long-term future, with sustainability at its heart. This policy has recently been refreshed in the Sustainable Farming and Food Strategy: a Forward Look.



With the publication of the Stern Report and the mainstream political focus brought about by the issue of climate change, this new role for a more sustainable agricultural industry has been clarified and strengthened.



Continued…

The wider policy context within Europe, whereby gradual reform of the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) is leading to a reduction in subsidies, with support shifted from Pillar 1 of the CAP (price support) to support for rural development (Pillar 2), has provided the critical impetus for change.

By contrast, there was a prevailing view in the States that Federal Agricultural policy, as expressed in the US Farm Bill, lags well behind that of Europe, in terms of its response to the issues of sustainability, food security – ie the ability of a country to feed itself, climate change and rural development generally, including support for smaller farmers.



Farming is political

A major difference therefore is that farming and food seem to be more political in the US in a way in which they are not in the UK. America is the epitome of the free market – and whether or not that is a good thing depends on your political point of view. With no Common Agriculture Policy to cushion life for small farmers in the States, subsidies for producers of major commodities such as corn and soybeans, and only nascent interest (and limited support) for what might be described as “an alternative food system”, US government policy on agriculture was felt to be wanting. However, with the publication in January of the 2007 US Farm Bill, there are signs that a policy shift may be underway.

Non-governmental organisations and campaigns proliferate for the defence of the family farm - to promote food security, to protect the environment and for the food system to deliver greater social justice. Naturally enough in the places I visited, with their broad liberal traditions, this sense of the political was bound to be strong.

State v Federal

The vast geography of America means also that more action is concentrated at the State level. State Governments in the areas I visited were taking action and showing leadership – on organics, on food policy and procurement, on support for sustainable agriculture. However, there were still gaps – and these were largely being filled by community, and private, enterprise.

Farmers’ Markets

Farmers markets felt embedded in the US in a way which they still are not in the UK, and certainly not in the North East of England, although there is growth in markets across the UK.

They seemed to play a greater role in place-making. Martin Orbach, Director of the Abergavenny Food Festival and local food activist, who has studied farmers markets in America, believes that this is because of a general absence of the High Street – they have sprawl as opposed to town centres – that might make the place-making qualities of a vibrant farmers’ market all the more potent a force.

Community Supported Agriculture

The different policy contexts may partly explain why community supported agriculture hasn’t yet caught on in the UK to the extent that it has in the US. In a nutshell, the idea that consumers may want to be, or are even entitled to be, stakeholders in a farm, is still a huge cultural shift for many farmers in this country, where the subsidy regime has removed their connectedness from their customers, marketplace, and wider society. Only now is the price of that disconnection becoming apparent. However, that is now changing and a new future may be over the horizon – if that long term cultural change can be effected.

Universities and networks

The Land Grant system in the United States whereby state sponsored advice to farmers is delivered by Universities under the 1862 Morrill Land Grant College Act has undoubtedly meant that Universities are more involved in the practice of extension and outreach than are their UK counterparts. This is a marked difference and may explain in part why I was impressed by the connectedness of the researchers I met to their wider stakeholder community. They had a can-do, practical approach that seemed miles away from the ivory tower of academia. They were also central to network-building as part of their wider embeddedness in their communities.

Similarities

Community enterprise and vibrancy

The gap left by markets and Government policy means that the energy and ingenuity of community-based organisations are filling that gap with a vengeance. Those organisations that I met were more obviously politically motivated than those in the UK, but their commitment to social justice, and their skills and strategies for addressing needs, were equally strong.

Grappling with the same problems

Finally, although the structures, organisations and individuals I met were different from those back home, we were all grappling essentially, with the same challenges and opportunities. There was equal interest in the challenge of healthier school meals, sourced more locally, on how to improve the quality of food for patients in hospitals, and a general surge of interest in how food is produced and where it is from. Whether or not this new food localism - and the drivers fuelling its growth - will result in a profound change in our food system remains to be seen.

Nevertheless, in policy terms, there are sound reasons for supporting the growth of more regional and local food economies, as part of an overall strategy for more sustainable agriculture, rural communities and wider society.

Lessons learned

• We must develop a more rounded evidence base that can capture the multiple benefits of a more localised food system – to economies, to the health and well-being of consumers, and to places.

• Enterprise, enterprise, enterprise – public policy needs to recognise the role of community and private enterprise, and foster its development to help bring about the long term culture change that is needed in the agricultural community. Grass roots leadership is essential.

• There is still much potential in the North East of England to develop action through the development of networks. There is role for everyone with an interest and support to mobilise action, but much fragmentation with little effective communication and intelligence sharing taking place. A food policy council could be useful and would be worthy of further investigation.

• We need to join up policy agendas and use investment in local and regional food to help to solve some our health problems in the Region, and the UK generally. For example, why not encourage farmers’ markets in our hospitals, and seek to encourage farmers’ markets in socially deprived areas, with the involvement of community leaders? How can we encourage more local fresh produce into hospitals and schools?

• Farmers’ markets in the North East of England are not fulfilling their potential. There is still work to do to help the markets develop their marketing and presentation, and the skills of the businesses that participate in them. An effective farmer’s market network for the Region is long overdue.

• I would like to see our Universities more embedded in the rural North East and to be sharing more interactively and more broadly their knowledge with rural communities and businesses. There is learning to be brought to bear around stakeholder participation in research programmes that would bear rich fruit were it to be developed.

• We should recognise the benefits of new and different strategies for profitable agriculture - for example, CSA offers potential as a new route to market for farmers in a world moving away from subsidy - and support those strategies with investment under the new Rural Development Programme for England.

• The value of the environment in the North East of England does not yet translate into value realised via consumer purchases of Regionally produced food grown in that high quality environment. There is a connection to be made via branding supported by rigorous accreditation, thereby giving the uplands in particular a sustainable way of protecting natural assets beyond the life of public subsidy.

Footnote –from the practical to the personal

I am convinced that it does matter that people know and care about how their food is produced and who it was grown by. It does matter that producers of food have a more direct relationship with their customers, that supply chains are shorter and more transparent. Food is an important component of social justice.

The popularity of local food will continue to grow, but direct markets cannot be an entire substitute for modern retail – supermarkets are where most of us buy most of our food. It has to be admitted that not all large scale retailers are demons, and we may wish to preserve access to our markets for developing countries. An entirely localised food system would rule out much of that. Similarly our farmers need to tap into export markets. These are difficult issues, and they need to be addressed. A valuable concept that was new to me is the idea of Domestic Fair Trade - for all producers, at home as well as abroad.

If we accept that it is time for change then that, of course, implies a change of behaviour on the part of consumers, me included. We need to be reminded that while we all need to eat, we need to eat wisely, to reconsider our insistence on cheap food, to be prepared to pay a little more if it brings the wider outcomes we want for ourselves and for society. An eloquent reminder is to be found in Michael Pollen’s book Omnivores Dilemma, widely recommended to me during my journey.

Michael Pollen is a respected journalist and writer on food, and this book is a clear, passionate, yet highly informative text about why we should eat well, with more regard to how our food is produced, with a better knowledge (not always comfortable) of the true costs of production. This book could mean that you never eat another McDonalds!

There is also the question of low incomes. Whilst in the States I was made aware of several successful projects to establish local food supply in challenging social environments, but I didn’t have time to visit any. For the affluent and middle class, becoming a concerned foodie is much easier than for those surviving on benefits.

In the end, climate change could make a more localised food system a necessity, rather than a luxury, in which case the globalised food system that feeds most of us will require a radical make-over. Personally, I shall continue to grow food on my allotment and continue to wrestle with the difficult questions of how far I am prepared to go to support a different kind of food system.

Finally, there is one memory that sums up the trip for me - the elderly grower at San Francisco Ferry Plaza Market who placed in my hands three heirloom peaches, perfectly ripe for eating, as if bestowing jewels, gave me a modest history of each variety and imbued my purchase with such meaning that I will never forget it.

RECONNECTION

Introduction

In the beginning

The theme of my Fellowship was reconnection – reconnection between farmers and their customers and marketplace.

The theme was timely: health scares and animal diseases, most notably BSE (Mad Cow Disease) in the 1980’s and 90’s, followed by Foot and Mouth in 2001 (which broke out less than 20 miles from my home in North East England) had focussed consumers’ and government’s attention on the state of agriculture in the UK. What was farming for, and crucially, where should it be going into the future?

Policy change

The result was the setting up of the Policy Commission into Sustainable Farming and Food set up under the Chairmanship of Sir Donald Curry (also from the North East of England – another co-incidence). This was followed by the Government’s Strategy for Sustainable Farming and Food, a challenging and rigorous analysis of what was needed with a roadmap of how to get there over the longer term. The unifying thread and underpinning premise was that farming and wider society had become seriously disconnected and that re-establishing that connection was essential if farming was to secure a viable future. .

Government policy was clear, agriculture needed to develop new markets in response to changes in the Common Agriculture Policy and the gradual withdrawal of subsidies over the next 10 years; it needed to re-connect with customers and become sustainable - environmentally, economically, and socially. Disease scares and animal welfare fiascos had to be eliminated. The industry needed a new vision, new ideas and new blood.

Why America?

Why choose the States to learn more about reconnection? On the face of it this would be a perverse choice of destination. In the land of Wal-mart and McDonalds could there possibly be activities springing out of a new, more localised, food system from which we might learn? There were – and these turned out to be something of an inspiration.

I am indebted to Professor Philip Lowe, Director of the Rural Economy and Land Use Programme, and formerly Professor of Rural Economy, whose stay in Madison on a sabbatical and subsequent enthusiasm on his return sowed the seed of my curiosity.

The idea germinated and grew. My work for One NorthEast (the Regional Development Agency in the North East of England) as manager in charge of its rural development, involved seeking ways of “adding value” to the Region’s agriculture and food industries. We were actively exploring the opportunities for (mainly) rural food producers to develop new products for new markets. We were due to take on new responsibilities for running the forthcoming Rural Development Programme for England, that would focus more strongly on helping the land-based industries adapt to change and embrace new markets. Reconnection was everywhere.

It was also the right time for me to take a break, stand back and go and seek out new ideas and inspiration. My employers were supportive and my application to the Churchill Trust for a Fellowship to visit America was successful. I was introduced by Philip to more people who could help me establish my itinerary.

Health warning

This report comes with a health warning - although I met many researchers, it is not a piece of research. It is not a definitive guide to good practice, although I found much good, even exemplary, practice; the basis of learning to bring back. It is a personal account, but I hope an informed one, that will be interesting to read and give others insights and ideas they may wish to follow up. It may not change policy but I hope it will improve the way policy is delivered, and contribute to the development of a local and Regional food economy in the North East of England.

I have included web-site references in the main body of the text. Selected examples of reconnection are presented throughout the report more as pen-portraits than case studies: I would have needed more time and deeper investigation for them to be counted as such.

Thanks

There are many people whom I would like to thank personally for their help, good humour, enthusiasm and sheer depth of knowledge which they shared with me unreservedly. I should especially like to thank Professor Philip Lowe, Professor Mike Bell and his wife Diane Mayerfeld, John and Dorothy Priske, Ruth Simpson, Brent McGowan, Michelle Miller, John Hendrickson, Steve Stevenson, Suzanne Briggs, Brian Rother, Professor Larry Lev, Professor Jennifer Allen, Professor Clare Hinrichs and Gail Feenstra. This list is by no means exhaustive. There are many other people who gave up their time to talk to me and who were generous in introducing me to others.

Thank you, everyone.

Finally I should like to thank the Rural Team at One NorthEast for “minding the shop” whilst I was away and my boss, Tom Warburton, who knew it would mean extra work for him, but let me go anyway.

The journey

I travelled for six weeks, visiting three States – Wisconsin, Oregon and California - but I was acutely aware that the places I visited were not the typical America of George Bush and neo-conservatism. These were centres of progressive thought and liberal ideas - and affluence – that could make a flourishing alternative or ‘local’ food culture possible.

Madison, Wisconsin

The university

Madison has a population of around 450,000 and, astonishingly, a student population of 50,000. The University of Wisconsin alone employs 36,000 people. According to Forbes Magazine, Madison has the highest per capita concentration of PhDs anywhere in the USA, and is rated one of the best metro areas to launch a business or career (these often revolve around universities that offer a diverse, educated work force and, especially when they are far from big cities, relatively low costs). Madison, with its high quality of life, is considered to have a high quality of life and is experiencing significant in-migration. One of the surprising discoveries was the number of cycle and walk ways in and around the city – not a feature, perhaps, associated with life in America.

Diversified farming

Agriculture has always been important – not for nothing is Wisconsin known as the “Dairy State”. It also has the dubious honour of being the home of the Kraft Cheese Slice, and is the world’s leading producer of cranberries (e.g. Ocean Spray). Diversified farming contributes significantly to the Madison economy; nearly one-sixth of all Wisconsin farms are located within the Greater Madison market region – the paradox of the smaller, flourishing, diversified farms alongside the industrial scale production of milk, cheese, corn and soybeans is striking. Organic production in the Madison area is booming and Wisconsin has the second highest number of certified organic operations in the country after California, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Portland, Oregon

Leadership from the city council – Office of Sustainable Development

In Portland the commitment to civic leadership and to sustainable development demonstrated by Portland City Council was an unexpected and exciting discovery. The Office of Sustainable Development (OSD) provides leadership and supports practical solutions to improve the environmental, social and economic health of Portland.  The OSD was created in 2000 with strong political leadership and backing, and now has a staff of around 40 people.

Food Policy and Programmes

I met Steve Cohen early on in my stay in Portland. Steve runs the Food Policy and Programmes at the OSD. Their purpose is to support local sustainable agriculture in the region and to enable residents to access healthy, “culturally appropriate” food. There is a land use and food policy for the Region, school food and institutional purchasing programme and the OSD has been instrumental in the establishment of the Portland/Multnomah Food Policy Council – a multi-stakeholder group that brings citizens and professionals together from the region to address issues such as food access, land use planning and local food purchasing. I came to the conclusion that the leadership shown by the City Council in Portland was one of the reasons why a more local food system was flourishing there and was regarded as important - it helped to create the right climate for things to happen, and to bring key people together in an effective network.

There are striking similarities between Madison and Portland – both are similar in size, left-leaning and progressive, and significant producers historically of primary produce – in the case of Portland and the State of Oregon, the production of fruit and berries (Oregon is one of the US leading producers of cherries) and timber from its considerable areas of forest.

San Francisco, California

Cultural vitality

Famous on film, a top tourist destination and affluent, San Francisco boasts a prosperous financial sector, with an economy that is increasingly tied to Silicon Valley to the south, both creating a need for highly educated workers with specialized skills. It has been positioning itself as a biotechnology and biomedical hub and research center. It is also recently ranked number one for cultural vitality in the United States – there are more non profits arts organizations, artists and employment in arts establishments per 1,000 residents than any other metropolitan area in the States. Given its location in one of the top food producing regions of the world and its renowned climate, it isn’t surprising that the local food scene is booming.

Farmers Markets – a metaphor for reconnection

Sustained growth

Any investigation into reconnection had to begin with farmers’ markets. I visited farmers’ markets in the three States of Wisconsin, Oregon and California, both large and small, from the very local to the downtown markets, such as Dane County in Madison, America’s largest. My timing was good - I visited during the height of summer which meant that there was fresh, seasonal produce in abundance. Farmers’ markets in the States have shown steady, sustained growth over the last decade or so, more than doubling in number since 1994 to nearly 4,500 in 2006 according to USDA figures.

Downtown and neighbourhood

I was introduced by Professor Mike Bell of the University of Wisconsin to two markets in Madison, operating at very different ends of the scale. Westside Market in a municipal parking lot was a small neighbourhood market.

The second, Dane County Farmers Market in Capitol Square, is now the largest in the USA with 200 plus producers - on a Saturday at the height of summer this market attracts upwards of 20,000 visitors.

In Portland, Oregon, I visited the large Saturday market in the leafy square in the City Centre near the State University of Portland, and a market in the inner city suburbs at Hollywood. Finally, in downtown San Francisco, I met representatives of the Centre for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA), a non-profit organisation that has run the famous Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market since 1999. CUESA was organized in 1994 to educate urban consumers about sustainable agriculture and to create links between urban dwellers and the farmers who practice sustainable agriculture in the Bay Area.

Embedded

There were farmers’ markets being held, quite by chance, near to where I was staying or whilst sight-seeing, in all kinds of locations from small villages to small towns. They seemed to have become part of the fabric of how local food was being sold in the areas that I visited and felt embedded in a way that I don’t believe we have yet achieved in the UK. Markets were held weekly and often more frequently - consumers could rely on their regularity for elements of their weekly shopping.

Enterprise and innovation

The markets impressed me with their vibrancy, the quality of the produce, the professionalism of their presentation, and the effort being made to connect with customers. They were also acting as incubators of enterprise and of innovation. At Hollywood Farmers’ Market in Portland, Thompson Farms, a berry grower, had teamed up with a local high school to involve students in the running of the enterprise including taking responsibility for running the stall, giving them invaluable experience in how to market and promote the business, and a connection with farming that many of them would never otherwise contemplate.

Continued…

Education and awareness

Making a difference

The markets were playing a key role in disseminating information and a source of education for consumers, they were places where networks were being created and relationships built. Miriam Grunes of the Research, Education, Action and Policy on Food Group (REAP) in Madison acknowledged the role of Dane County Farmers’ Market in the growth of local food scene and the change in people’s attitudes and levels of awareness: “5,000 people a week are having conversations with the people who grow their food”. That had to make a difference.





Centre for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA)

CUESA’s Julie Cummins told me about their comprehensive outreach programme to educate consumers about food and where it comes from at the Ferry Plaza Market. She explained about their Market to Table programmes. These involve farmer interviews at the Market where farmers are available to talk to market customers and people can drop in and ask questions. .

“We’re trying to connect the farmers with the chefs – for example we involve a local restaurant, the farmer grows something that can be included in the recipe, and then it’s cooked in the market.” Ferry Plaza has a demonstration kitchen facility!

“We’re also creating temporary exhibits - one might be about the real costs of food, another about sustainable agriculture. We are also planning farm tours so that people can set foot in the place where their food is grown”. In addition CUESA issues an e mail newsletter to more than 5,000 subscribers. It gives details of produce that is in season, includes a feature interview, and discusses issues in sustainable agriculture.

Community health

In Portland, Oregon, the main market had a strong theme of health in the community and information booths sponsored by local health care providers. Connections were being made between sustainable production methods, healthy eating, support for local economies and food security (a concept that is explored further below) with farmers’ markets sitting right at their heart.

Regulation and standards

The market rules and regulations differed subtly from State to State. In the Madison markets the producer had to be present in person at the market and couldn’t send a substitute. Mike Bell explained that this was a deliberate strategy to keep out the bigger players who might then take over the markets and distort their purpose. In Oregon, the rule about who fronted the stall was more relaxed, and employees could undertake the selling on behalf of an owner of the business. All of the markets had clear standards of certification for producers and for markets, to ensure that consumers could have confidence in the products they were buying (i.e. they met minimum standards of legality and food hygiene) and that the markets were genuinely local, featuring produce from within a defined geographical area.

Certification

For example, in California a “certified” farmers’ market is a location approved by the County Agricultural Commissioner where farmers offer for sale only those fruits and vegetables they grow themselves. To participate in a certified market, producers have to be registered in person and to display the Certificate.

“This is very good for the consumer, although it’s more paperwork for producers” says Julie. It may have also contributed to the success of farmers’ markets in California – throughout the State there are approximately 368 certified farmers' markets and approximately 2,900 certified producers. In the San Francisco Bay area alone some 12 certified farmers’ markets gross over $10 million annually for local family farms.



Welcome to Hollywood, Portland

Ingenuity, identifying the customer

Hollywood Market, to the east of Portland in a mixed neighbourhood of older suburbs, was a model of community enterprise and ingenuity, its success based on a combination of hard graft and innovation, coupled with rigorous professionalism in the way in which the market was run. There was a clear focus on meeting customer needs – and from the market organisers point of view customers include both the consumer and the farmer selling produce in the market.

‘Between a church and a business’

Suzanne Briggs, one of the volunteer coordinators of the Hollywood Market and the driving force behind its success, is a remarkable woman. A community activist with a passion for the local food economy, she has an extensive knowledge of what’s going on, and an impressive network extending into Oregon and beyond. I spent a fascinating Saturday morning in her company as she showed me round the market, and I owed to her directly several contacts that I followed up later on in my trip.

“I describe farmers’ markets as half way between church and a business” says Suzanne.

“We started out with 17 farmers, and a few hundred customers. When we started, I could hear my own whistle.” Now there are 45 farmers a week and on the Saturday before my visit, 5,000 people attended the market – a record attendance.

Designed for the community

“We wanted this market to be community owned. We designed the market so that people would linger and bump into their neighbors. In this very competitive society we live in we have demonstrated value of co-operation and collaboration. People have claimed ownership of Hollywood. Now there’s a viable business centre and the market has contributed to local regeneration. The area now has a micro-brewery”

Farmers are customers

Hollywood Farmers’ Market has 100/150 volunteers, who set up the stalls and meet and greet customers. The Market employs two staff on a part time basis - a market manager, and a volunteer coordinator both of whom work 25 hours per week. “The number one customer in this market is the farmer. They have to be groomed and made to be partners in the market” says Suzanne.

“We expect people to stick 100% to the market rules. They must have grown all that they produce. The goal has to be to save the family farm. This market has broken even from day one”. She regards farmers’ markets as good examples of asset-based, local models of economic development that provide an alternative vision to global agri-business.

Wireless technology

The use of broadband wireless technology allows swipe cards linked to electronic benefit transfer system to be used in the market, so that those in receipt of food stamps, for example, can use those benefits in the market. The same technology also allows customers to use their credit and debit cards to get cash to spend in the Markets if they run short of cash. Suzanne said: “We set this up as a totally separate value-added enterprise. We wanted to show the vendors what we could do for them.”

Oregon Farmers’ Market Association (OFMA)

Hollywood Market is networked more widely via the Oregon Farmers’ Market Association (OFMA) started in 1987 by a group of market managers in south of region. After an up and down history, it now comprises 34 markets state-wide. OFMA has been assisted in no small measure by the work of Professor Larry Lev, Extension Economist, at Oregon State University, Corvallis, and his colleague, Gary Stevenson.





Extension economics

Larry has developed tools for market managers, such as rapid market assessment, that have been taken up by farmers’ markets in the UK. In fact, he has been a regular speaker at events organised by the Farmers’ Markets and Retail Association (FARMRA). His work has shown that there are clear common denominators for success – Larry also pointed out that there are many failures along the way and that the failure rate of farmers’ markets is high.

Continued…

Frequency

One of the keys to success is for markets to become more frequent. “I’ve trained 150 people to do rapid market assessments. In England, I’ve helped markets such as Winchester, once a monthly market. I tried to persuade them to have a more frequent market. I hope they’re going to go weekly.” I found they’d taken his advice.





Data

American markets, he says, are poor in resources, often with untrained market managers, and board members are volunteers. “Data has been critical. You need data to get Government’s attention. We’re not there yet in terms of country policy”

Market share 2.5%

To illustrate the point he reminded me that Oregon is big agricultural state, generating around $4 billion per annum total farm produce sales, most of which is exported. Think of cherries from the USA and most of them will have come from Oregon. By comparison, about $100 million per annum is generated by farmers’ markets, direct sales to restaurants, farm shops, U-Pick (Pick Your Own) and CSA – about 2.5% of the total. It’s growing, but still small.

The Chefs Connection

Fountain Prairie Farm

I met John Priske at Dane County Farmers Market and that led me on to explore the chefs’ connection in Madison and, later, in Portland. John raises Highland Cattle at Fountain Prairie Farm, an hour’s drive from Madison in Wisconsin. This 280 acre beef farm includes 35 acres of wetland and 28 acres of restored prairie. John’s passion is to farm in harmony - with the environment rather than against it - and from his land he raises Highland Cattle that produce high quality beef. The markets for their beef, which is dry hung for 21 days, are the Dane County Farmers Market, retail stores in Madison and high quality restaurants.

L’Etoile Restaurant

One of the best restaurants in Madison, and now one of America’s top 50, is L’Etoile, who have been using John’s beef on their menu for the last four years. Started by chef Odessa Piper, L’Etoile is committed to supporting local produce and has been a pioneer in this area. L’Etoile certainly put their money where their mouth is - even a club sandwich sold in their bistro, Café Soleil, says what beef is in it and where it is from.

Number Eighty

During my stay, new owner Tori Miller put on a producers dinner in honour of John Priske and his wife Dorothy, as a celebration of their beef. I was very glad of an invitation. The menu featured only beef from Fountain Prairie farm for all five courses (except dessert!), and the star was the prime steer John referred to with reverence as ‘Number Eighty. In the hands of Tori Miller, Number Eighty was a taste sensation and at the end of the meal more than 70 diners, who had paid a not-inconsiderable sum to attend, rose to their feet in applause.

Farm to plate

L’Etoile’s philosophy is clearly articulated on the restaurant’s website that also contains a ‘Chef’s notes’ blog from Tori which, at the time of writing, featured enthusiastic coverage of his trip to Terra Madre in Italy in October. “L’Etoile passionately supports Wisconsin farmers” it says. “In following food from the farm to the plate we serve, we have learned that respect for the land and a thoughtful relationship between people and their environment is vital to thriving cultures. It is an honour to partner with Wisconsin farmers; we look forward to working with their incredible ingredients for many years to come.”



Home Grown Wisconsin Lunch

The Millers have taken their restaurant philosophy out into the community and are participating with the Home Grown Wisconsin Lunch project. This is a collaboration between the Centre for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS) and the REAP Food Group (funded by the USDA) that is about bringing local, fresh and seasonal produce into Madison schools. Tori and fellow chef Eva Ringstrom are teaching seventh graders how to cook with local seasonal produce on a weekly basis as part of the programme.





Chefs collaborative

The Millers are part of a growing movement of chefs in the States committed to supporting sustainably-produced, high quality local and seasonal produce. That it also makes good business sense is undeniable. The Chefs Collaborative was founded in 1993 and now has more than 1,000 members across the US in the food service industry. Its mission is to educate and inspire chefs and consumers, to encourage sustainable practices and improve the quality and taste of the food we eat.



Education

Education is at the heart of the Collaborative’s mission. Through newsletters, conferences, and seminars, it tackles “hot” food topics such as genetically modified organisms, mad cow disease, and sustainable fishing practices. The Collaborative also sponsors children’s courses on basic cooking skills and the impact of food choices on themselves, their culture, and their environment.

Continued…

Farmer-Chef Connection

Portland has a particularly active chapter of the Chefs Collaborative. The Farmer-Chef Connection programme is a direct-marketing approach to buying and selling local products while building long-term business relationships. The programme, now in its third year, starts with an interactive conference and ends with an annual direct buying guide, ‘The Guide to Local and Seasonal Products’.



Ecotrust – the Salmon Nation

The initiative is a joint one with a remarkable non-profit organisation called Ecotrust, with headquarters in Portland, which seemed to be instrumental in a lot of what was happening around sustainable food along the whole of the West Coast, from Washington State down as far as Northern California. Deborah Kane, Vice President of Ecotrust’s Farm and Food Programme explained that their involvement in food came out if its mission to protect the environment, in particular the ecological richness of the “Salmon Nation” that extends down the West coast of America – its watersheds, rivers, forests, land and native peoples.



Edible Portland

“Ecotrust has made a commitment to what a sustainable economy could look like. You can’t sustain the richness that is the Salmon Nation unless you have healthy, functioning, food systems in a way that honors the land and the people who consume it”, says Deborah. In addition to the Farmer-Chef Connection, Ecotrust is helping school districts to source local, seasonal and sustainable products, undertakes research and publishes the glossy magazine Edible Portland – “part soapbox and all celebration of the local, seasonal foods that abound in Salmon Nation”. Edible Portland was widely available throughout the city and provided and excellent source of information about local food and what was happening.



The Co-operative Connection: Home Grown Wisconsin (HGW)

Grower cooperatives

In addition to individual producers cultivating direct relationships with chefs, farmers are also finding ways of accessing restaurant markets by working together. I met up with John Hendrickson, a local small-scale vegetable and herb grower and also a lecturer at the Centre for Integrated Agricultural Systems at the University of Wisconsin. He is a member of Home Grown Wisconsin, a grower co-operative selling fresh produce - including fruit, vegetables, honey and dried beans.

High-end restaurants

John was an advisory board member from the start of the co-op until recently. There are some members who left – it wasn’t for them. He says that HGW needs members committed to working co-operatively. From small beginnings in 1996, cultivating restaurant customers largely in the Madison area, the co-op now has 25 members supplying high-end restaurants in Chicago and Milwaukee. These have proved to be more fruitful customers than the local trade.

Distributed organisation

“Madison chefs originally said having a more centrally-run service, with one lot of paperwork, centralized to a co-op model would be advantageous. But didn’t work out that way – there were the extra costs of a manager, facilities, trucks. Chefs weren’t willing to pay the higher price, and they liked a direct relationship with growers.”

CSA into Chicago

It is owned and managed by the growers and employs a full time manager plus two assistants. It has warehouse and packing facility at Madison Enterprise Centre, and has invested in a cooler truck. Customers access the produce lists via the internet and place orders on line or by phone. HGW has also extended a Community Supported Agriculture Scheme into Chicago, (now in its second year) and John envisages that it will be a major part of business, eventually.

The next level

Says John: “1996 was our first year and it was really a flop - systems weren’t in place and paperwork wasn’t established. We had a succession of managers and needed a new manager to take the co-op to next level. “ They found Deb Hansen, the current manager, who helped to bring sales up to $600k in 2006. Each farmer gets a cheque from the co-op – minus 3% that is reinvested to pay for capital purchases such as the cooler truck.





Community Supported Agriculture – ‘we can all be farmers’

Shares improve cash flow, minimise risk

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a radical idea that has caught on much more in the States than in the UK. Individuals or families can purchase a share in a farm in return for regular supplies of fresh produce. The farmer gets the certainty of regular customers and cash flow, and minimises risk – CSA shares are generally purchased up front. Consumers have a stake in the farm they support and access to fresh, often organically produced food. However, the relationship between farmer and consumer goes beyond simple notions of producer and customer, this is much more a relationship of equals, with customers as genuine stakeholders or even owners. Via CSA we can all be farmers.

The origins of CSA go back to the 1960s in both Europe and Japan, as part of a response to concerns over food safety and the growth of urbanization. CSA came to the United States in 1986 with the setting up of two farms on the east coast.

Growth during 90s

Community Supported Agriculture is not mainstream in the UK, although there are signs that it is growing. In the US there are now some 1700 CSA farms across the country, compared to less than 100 at the beginning of the 1990s. Wisconsin has a significant number (the first was established in 1988).

I spent a day with one of the pioneers, Richard de Wilde of Harmony Valley Farm near Viroqua – about 80 miles or so from Madison.

CSA - Harmony Valley Farm

Collaboration

Richard is one of the largest CSA farmers, with 100 acres, all in organic production. He was brought up on farms in South Dakota – and has a degree in mechanical engineering. He has been a CSA farmer since 1993, having started with farmers markets and some retail – Harmony Valley still has weekly stall at Dane County Farmers Market. He runs a sizeable operation providing some 1200 CSA customers, with weekly vegetable and/ or fruit boxes every week during the season. In order to meet this sizeable market he increasingly collaborates with other organic producers.

Sound labour practice

The farm employs 30 staff, 12 of whom are full time. Richard de Wilde provides all expenses of housing, and a wage. Plus he pays retirement and health insurance and feeds workers lunch each day. “We build sound labour practice into our philosophy – it’s part of what our customers are buying into”.

Lunch

Cooking is, not surprisingly, important here. A chef is employed to cook lunch, and these are often interns (trainees) from chef school, or people seeking to broaden their knowledge of local, organic, produce. “Everyone comes to lunch” says Richard – and I was no exception, sitting out on the grass in the hot sun with tacos, chili, rice salad and fresh fruit on the menu. “Kyle’s a chef and he’s here because he’d like to learn about organics, he’d like to have a restaurant, he’s been to chef school, worked in California and Florida. He helps us write our newsletter recipes. New recipe ideas keep it fresh. We’re sharing our learning experience with members.”

Continued…

Close customer relationship

Richard enjoys his relationship with customers – they come for events, social contact and to help with the harvesting of some crops. The weekend after my visit there was to be a barn dance and camping-over, with breakfast, for customers and their families. There is a strong emphasis on communications with a comprehensive website and a weekly newsletter where issues around organics, food security jostle alongside recipes and seasonal eating tips.

Skilled work

Richard is also clear that CSA is a skilled job. “It’s not a job for beginning farmers – you need lots of organizational skill, lots of bookkeeping skills and lots of growing skills. He considers that he is successful at it. “I like it that I’ve been successful with something that everyone said couldn’t be done. I love seeing beautiful, well cared for vegetables, it’s not easy to do, and we do a very good job. I’ve tried to do things better, easier, and more profitable.”



CSA - Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition (MACSAC)

Partners Shares Programme

Purchasing a share in a CSA farm isn’t cheap – in comparison to say, purchasing food at the supermarket. The Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition (MACSAC), is a non-profit organisation that promotes CSA in the Madison area, provides a membership scheme for farms, networks information and runs several programmes, one of which – the Partners Shares Programme - aims to specifically assist lower income households to become part of a CSA. In 2006 there were 53 families in the scheme.

Federal Poverty Guidelines

I met Laura Brown, MACSAC’s coordinator, and she explained how the Programme works. Eligibility to join the programme is based on Federal Poverty Guidelines – where household income is less than $24k per annum (about £11,000) for a family of four.

“We subsidise a 50% share of a CSA and we pay up front. The family determines the schedule of repayments. The scheme receives no government grant funding - MACSAC contributes the proceeds of its cookbook, and undertakes other local fund-raising. Overall, the scheme costs $19k in subsidized shares and admin costs, $28k with staff overhead included.

Regulation

“For the Partner Shares programme we require a farmer to be part of CSA for at least a year. We are trying to grow the programme – farmers love it as they getting people sent to them fully paid. Some farmers are setting up their own share assistance programmes where they will pay 25% of costs.”



The University Connection

A side issue thatI wanted to explore along the way is the role that Universities are playing - in particular, their outreach activities that were supporting producers via research and debate and the transfer of knowledge. I had learned from Philip Lowe about the “Wisconsin idea” - the philosophy of embedding the university in its community for wider social benefit - and the opportunity arose during my stay to spend some time with researchers at the Centre for Integrated Agricultural Systems at University of Wisconsin, Madison. Whilst this could only be a glimpse of academia with its sleeves rolled up, it provided me with much to reflect upon, with possible lessons for the North East of England.

University of Wisconsin’s Centre for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS)

I had an opportunity to spend some time with the team at the University of Wisconsin’s Centre for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS). Created in 1989, and now under the leadership of Brent McGown, the Centre’s mission is to build programmes of research into sustainable agriculture that respond to farmer and citizen needs - and involve them in setting research agendas via its Citizens Advisory Council.



Citizens Advisory Council

The Council inputs into the Centre’s long-term plans for research on sustainable farming and rural development and Council members keep Centre staff apprised of emerging issues of importance to citizens. Council members serve four year terms. They and Centre staff meet three times each year formally and consult throughout the year informally. Council members also serve as reviewers of Centre research publications.

CIAS Summer meeting

I was fortunate in being able to participate in the summer meeting of the CIAS Citizens Advisory Council that happened to coincide with my time in Wisconsin. I was able to observe first hand the interaction between researchers and stakeholders. Hosted on Tom and Laurel Keiffer’s Dream Farm, that has one of the few dairy sheep flocks in the State, the two day meeting was a combination of talking through issues on the farm with sitting in an open fronted barn discussing key issues for research and debate.



Domestic Fair Trade

Issues raised included selling local products into retail outlets and creative ways of engaging consumers, to scaling up through value chains - ‘domestic fair trade’ - with the ultimate aim of fostering a more environmentally and socially sound form of agriculture able to rediscover and re-invent new markets, re-instate local processing along the way and revitalise the rural economy. The phrase “Agriculture of the Middle” became something I would hear more about, and it formed a focus for the next leg of my trip.

Connectedness

I became increasingly impressed by the connectedness of the CIAS team to farming and rural businesses, by their involvement in a number of research and education programmes that benefited producers directly, and by the timeliness and relevance of their areas of research. They had a can-do approach that felt miles away from the ivory tower of academia.

Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Programme (SAREP)

This sense of being embedded in the local community continued In California, where I met Gail Feenstra of the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Programme (SAREP) University of California (UC), Davis. SAREP is a statewide programme whose purpose is:

To assist California farmers and ranchers in developing and implementing sustainable production and marketing systems;

To support California's rural and urban communities in understanding the concept and value of sustainable agriculture and participating in sustainable food and agricultural systems



Grants

As part of its activities, SAREP runs a competitive grants programme that benefits farmers and local communities. Says Gail, “most grants have been for agricultural production systems but since 1991 we have also been funding food systems research. For example we gave a grant to the Center for Urban Education About sustainability (CUESA) to develop curriculum material for kids about where their food comes from. We have given a number of grants to Food Policy Councils, plus grants for cooperative CSAs.

Agricultural Sustainability Institute (ASI)

In 2006, nine one-year projects were granted a total of $80,349. Says Gail: “You couldn’t say organics out loud when we first started. In 20 years there’s been a huge change in acceptability.” With an endowment from the Kellogg Foundation, UC Davis has established the Agricultural Sustainability Institute (ASI), which will increase research into food systems. The Institute provides leadership for research, teaching and outreach and extension efforts in agricultural sustainability at the Davis Campus and throughout the UC system. The work of SAREP will become part of the Institute.



Continued…

Agriculture of the Middle – the challenge of Scaling up

Scaling up

I became increasingly caught up with the question of scale – what happens when you move beyond direct marketing, or CSA, to models where customers are more distant from producers, and economies of scale come into play. Is there a role for local processing and retailers? Can large farms keep a close relationship with customers? Would consolidated supply chains uphold the values of sustainability and provide a fair living for smaller to medium sized, often family, farms?

Agriculture of the Middle

Professor Steve Stevenson, part of the CIAS team at the University of Wisconsin had spoken to me about a national research project he was involved in that was seeking to better understand these questions and to provide an evidence based rationale for the regeneration of a sector of the agricultural economy that had been much in evidence in times past, but which was being squeezed out by industrialisation and consolidation of food production as part of an increasingly globalised economy.

The Agriculture of the Middle initiative is concerned with the 80% of farmland in the U.S. that is managed by farmers whose operations are too big for small-scale direct markets and yet are unable to compete with large, consolidated firms. The premise of the initiative is that these farmers are increasingly left out of the US food system – and that has serious consequences. Says the Ag of the Middle website “If present trends continue, these farms, together with the social and environmental benefits they provide, will likely disappear in the next decade or two. The ‘public good’ that these farms have provided in the form of land stewardship and community social capital will disappear with them.”

Family Farm Defenders

Also in Wisconsin, Ruth Simpson of the organisation Family Farm Defenders had taken me out one Saturday afternoon to meet various farmers and business owners she knew. We visited Cedar Grove cheese factory. Still independently owned, the cheese factory had on the wall was a map showing how many other local cheese factories had been in business in 1900 – in a ten mile area there were more than 20, now there was just Cedar Grove.

The Role of Certification

Food Alliance (FA)

It soon became clear that, if scaling up was going to be successful and maintain credibility with consumers, accreditation or certification systems were going to be part of the mix. I was recommended to speak to Scott Exo, Director of the Food Alliance (FA), whose Certification System was acting as a model in the development of ‘Agriculture of the Middle’, (the FA is also a partner in the research).

Incentivisation

Food Alliance is a nonprofit organization that creates market incentives for adoption of sustainable agricultural practices, and educates business leaders and other food system stakeholders on the benefits of sustainable agriculture. It was founded in 1997 through a collaborative initiative by Oregon State University, Washington State University, and the Washington State Department of Agriculture. Now the FA has offices in St Pauls, Minnesota, and in Portland, Oregon. It employs 9 full time staff and has an annual budget of $700k. Its funding comes from private foundations, Federal grants, and consultancy work, together with sponsorship from food companies.



Limitations of organic certification

Says Scott “Food Alliance grew from a rag tag group – farmers, university people, organics, farm labour, environmentalists. We recognised the limitations of organic certification, even though organics was growing fast it was only a small section of the agricultural world.”

Ethical premium

The FA commissioned research that showed that consumers would pay for ethical and environmentally sound products. “You need both certification and market development to stimulate interest in those products. Since 1998 we have been doing both.”

Third party inspection

Food Alliance operates a voluntary certification and eco-labeling program based on standards developed to define socially and environmentally responsible agricultural practices. Farms, ranches and food processors that meet Food Alliance’s standards, as determined by a third-party site inspection, are granted the right to use its eco-label to distinguish their products in the marketplace.

Criteria

To earn certification, farms and ranches must:

• Reduce or eliminate pesticide use through integrated pest management (IPM);

• Conserve soil and water resources;

• Protect and enhance wildlife habitat;

• Provide safe and fair working conditions; and,

• Provide healthy and humane care for livestock.

Fees

Producers pay a base fee on a sliding scale. Fee includes inspection, starts at $400 a year; there’s a different scale for processors.

Growth since 1998

Food Alliance launched its certification and eco-labeling program in 1998 in Portland, Oregon with a single apple grower selling in three area grocery stores. Today it has over 225 certified producers in 15 states managing over 3.8 million acres of farm and range land, covering livestock, dairy products, wheat and other grains, and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. These represent $100million gross sales.

Market Partnerships

Embedded in Food Alliance’s program is a commitment to supporting the profitability and continued survival of small and mid-sized family-owned farms and ranches. To support these producers, Food Alliance has developed a large number of formal “market partnerships” to increase demand for and facilitate sales of certified products. These include agreements with retail grocery stores and food co-ops, restaurants, distributors and food service providers – and involve local and regional businesses, as well as national companies such as Bon Appétit, ARAMARK, Sodexho, and SYSCO Corporation.

Food service

“Food service has become more important than retailers – it’s a more challenging environment. There is particular interest from companies that serve colleges and universities because of their client group. “ The FA’s five year goal is expanding to five times its current numbers of farmers/ranchers - from 225 to about 1200. It is also raising the $160k it needs to move into California.

A tale of two retailers

I was able to visit two retailers, in Madison and Portland, which was providing a significant market for small and large producers alike, underpinned by a set of visible ethical values, the ‘domestic fair trade’ that Steve Stevenson had talked about.

Willy Street Co-op

Philip Lowe had told me to seek out the famous Willy Street Co-op in Madison (named after Williamson Street, where its modern building is located). I was introduced by Mike Bell to Lynn Olson, one of its directors.

I had to forget any preconceptions I might have had about a potential 1970s alternative shopping experience. Willy Street is modern, welcoming, with a breathtaking range of organic or sustainably produced fresh and processed foods, plus other goods, all beautifully presented, with knowledgeable and committed staff at the checkout.

“Our mission is to run a financially-sound grocery store” says Lynn. What started as a buying club in 1973 in the basement of Nature’s Bakery is now a profitable grocery store with 4,000 co-op equity owners- anticipated to rise to 9,000 within the next year. The business moved into the black in 2000 and makes healthy profit. It is committed to ethical principles and to supporting sustainable agriculture, social justice and education.

For example, the company makes available loans that can be invested in local community development, and its directors were instrumental in the setting up of the Eastside Farmers’ Market (in one of the less affluent areas of Madison), including paying for land decontamination.

Commitment to local

Lynnn explained their commitment to local suppliers: “Local is our first priority, although we do have to bring in produce from California”. By local, she means grown or made in Wisconsin, or within a 150 mile radius. “We want to help farmers stay in business and flourish”.

Lynn describes the neighbourhood as diverse, with single mums and a growing number of elderly people regular shoppers at the store. Although prices aren’t cheap – they offer reduced price produce options, together with free membership of the co-op for seniors and “10% off everything they buy every day”.

New Seasons - retail at its best

I was told by several people that I should make an effort to meet the owners of New Seasons and to have a look at their stores. It was excellent advice. I became an avid shopper at one of the stores near to where I was staying in north Portland. Think Waitrose in terms of values and products, Tesco or ASDA in terms of size, coupled with a massively scaled up Holland and Barratt (UK health store) and you sort of have it. Then multiply that by 9 stores (10 by the end of 2008) in and around the Portland Metro area and you have an idea of the scale of the operation.



Independence, supporting the regional economy

Amazingly, New Seasons is still independently owned. Its mission as stated on its website is to combine the service and atmosphere of an old-fashioned neighborhood market with a selection of foods and other products for today’s lifestyle. In addition it is “an active supporter of the regional food economy and is dedicated to purchasing from small Northwest farms, ranches, dairies and fisheries.” There is an emphasis on local and organic produce, hormone-free meat and poultry, fresh seafood, cheeses, breads from an in-store certified organic bakery and an extensive wine and beer selection.   Stores also feature a chef available to help shoppers create menus for family meals or large dinner parties, together with a staff nutritionist.

Producer’s dinner

I innocently sent an e-mail to Brian Rother, New Seasons Chief Executive, asking to meet up, not quite realizing how large the business was – I was expecting something more like a high-street deli! To his credit, Brian responded and even more surprisingly, suggested that I attend their annual thank you/celebration producers’ dinner that happened to be taking place during my stay in Portland. Hence, I got a chance to talk to suppliers face to face. I met the smallest scale farmers producing a few rare breed hogs and supplying organic meat to New Seasons, to one of the largest distributors of organic fresh produce on the West Coast – the Organic Distribution Company, whom I subsequently visited.

Stay local

I followed up the producer’s dinner with an interview with Claudia Kanozec, New Seasons Community Relations Manager. She reiterated the company philosophy:

“Our plan is not to grow outside Portland Metropolitan area. Our furthest away store is at Hillsboro – 20 miles downtown. We’re trying to have food come from as local as possible, focus on local and community. We’ve made all these relationships and aren’t able to duplicate these relationships elsewhere.

Fair to producers

“There are very few local grocery stores left. We felt that as long as we did a good job and gave people good prices, our customers would continue to support us.

Claudia explained that the company doesn’t require any of their producers to be exclusive to New Seasons. “We don’t restrict a grower from participating in a farmers’ market for example. People like working with us and feel that we’re really fair, and that we pay our bills on time. If there’s a farmer who is interested in making the transition to organic (3 years) we will pay them a guaranteed price for their produce during that time.”

Home Grown Programme

The company’s mission to support the regional food economy is epitomised by its Home Grown Programme, now a year old. “We have around 32,000 products on our shelves. The Programme asks “was any value added to that in Oregon, Washington and Northern California?” These are the three states that NS regards as regional and local. She reckons that about 10,000 products fit the Home Grown criteria – and these may be from just down the road. Home Grown products are identified in store by yellow stickers.

Fair trade for small producers

Claudia gave an example of how this policy was generating fair trade for small producers. “Claud Williams was thinking about getting out of the pork business. We wanted natural pork, so he switched over to natural product and now his daughter and her fiancée are taking over the hog farm. He was seriously thinking about getting out.”

Oregon Country Beef

Also at the New Seasons dinner were some ranchers from the meat co-op, Oregon Country Beef in their cowboy hats and jeans. I wanted to visit Doc and Connie Hatfield’s ranch near Brothers in eastern Oregon, but my luck ran out as they were off to a wedding on the one weekend I had free. The Hatfields have been one of the driving forces behind the success of Oregon Country Beef, whose meat sells under the brand name of Country Natural Beef.

Sophisticated & informative

Their website is a revelation - here is the brief history it gives:

“Twenty years ago, with ranchers all over Oregon staring bankruptcy in the face, 14 families decided to form a co-op without bricks and mortar to pursue a niche market for lean, natural beef. It started with just a few thousand head per year, but the co-op now markets more than 40,000 head annually. Sales are growing an average of 16 percent annually and the co-op is expanding east of the Rocky Mountains. CNB doesn’t own a feed yard, processing plant or even a business office. But it does own an ever-increasing slice of the natural beef market. Equally impressive is CNB’s commitment to promoting land stewardship and its determination to play a vital part in helping keep more family ranches in operation. “





McMenamins

Country Natural Beef’s “flat iron” steak is the best beef I have ever tasted. Interestingly, a rapidly expanding hotel/pub chain, McMenamins in Oregon and Washington States, serves Country Natural Beef burgers on its menu. At one of its pubs in Bend, the menu named the brand and, even more impressively, the waitress knew something about the beef and the co-op.

Stahlbush Island Farms – sustainable agriculture as big as it gets?

Connecting with customers

My last visit in Oregon was to look more closely at the issue of scale on a farm that had moved away from direct marketing, yet was still concerned to communicate information to its customers about its commitment to sustainable agriculture. Stahlbush Island Farms became in 1997 became the first farm to become Certified Sustainable by the Food Alliance. However, unlike most farms, Stahlbush Island Farms is also an on-farm food processor.

Award for sustainable agriculture

I was shown round by Sales Manager, Barry Westfall. He was rather reluctant at first and didn’t want me taking photographs of processing operations, obviously concerned about the competition. He explained that the founders of Stahlbush, Bill and Karla Chambers, had always had a commitment to caring for the land, and this has been recognized by the farm being a winner of US Presidential award for sustainable agriculture.

Processing for the food industry

In 1998 Stahlbush Island Farms launched its own brand of sustainably grown frozen fruits and frozen vegetables in distinctive, recyclable brown paper package. In 2003 they started selling the Farmer's Market brand of organic pumpkin products. Much of the food grown and processed at the farm is sold to other food companies who use the fruits and vegetables for ingredients in such products as soups, pies and baby foods. The range of crops includes – pumpkin, rhubarb, peas, broccoli, sweet potato, Marion berries and strawberries.

Premium values

The company buys or leases land to add to its current 4.000 acres total. “We’re achieving 10 – 15% growth a year in terms of our processed products. We are trying to add additional acreage – there’s not a lot of land to spare.” Its sustainable agriculture practices include reduced pesticides and integrated pest management, groundwater care, wetlands on farm for biodiversity, and there are no additives in its processed products. Barry says that the company is receiving a premium in the retail market in recognition of the way in which it farms.

Brand credibility

“We provide product to the largest maker of baby food in the USA. In the industrial market we are not necessarily receiving a premium but we nearly always land the business because of our certification” In other words, Stahlbush Island has developed a brand with credibility backed up by clear and independent accreditation by the Food Alliance. The brand is communicating a clear set of values to its customers and giving it a competitive edge in the market place.



The Health Connection

I was running out of time but there was one more reconnection to explore. It would appear that the health care market is becoming a significant customer for sustainable food.

Kaiser Permanente

From Suzanne Briggs (of the Hollywood Farmer market in Portland) I learned that the healthcare provider, Kaiser Permanente, were holding regular farmers’ markets in their healthcare centres and hospitals – they now operate 36 farmers’ markets in 6 States. I also then discovered that they were developing a food policy, that commits them to local and seasonal food supply, and were deliberately cultivating small, local suppliers to supply their hospitals, using much of the existing distribution infrastructure they had already in place.

Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF)

I spoke to Andrea Fernauld, Director of the Community Alliance with Family Farmers. CAFF were about to undertake a “farm to tray” pilot with Kaiser Permanente to test out whether a selection of local produce from small, local farms, could enter the supply chain to arrive in front of patients. This involved the small farms, many of which are owned and are run by minority ethnic groups, supplying their crops to Kaiser’s main distributor for onward transmission to Food Service Partners, the company that makes most of its patient meals. The pilot will be reviewed after six months. CAFF’s role has been to act as broker, “dealing with all the white noise, invoicing and relationship management, hand-holding the farmers. People make this out to be more difficult than it is” was her upbeat view of what they were tackling.

Healthy Living rebates

To conclude on a note of optimism, one of the most tantalising prospects for the future of sustainable food in the USA is recognition from the health industry of the preventive value of participation in healthy lifestyles – in particular, healthy eating. One of the health insurance providers in Madison, Physicians Plus, are offering healthy eating rebates under their Good Health Bonus Programme. This entitles customers who buy a share in a MACSAC approved CSA farm to use their rebate to offset the cost of their share. Rebates are $100 for a single person, $200 for a family. CSA membership is thus demonstrating a recognized commitment to healthier eating that has value in the market place.

When hard-nosed actuaries are willing to acknowledge commercial benefits in this unambiguous manner, it looks as if sustainable food may be about to enter the mainstream.

Ends.

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