| Abstract: |
Consumer demand for food that is locally produced,marketed, and consumed is
generating increased interest in local food throughout the United States. As
interest grows, so do questions about what constitutes local food and what
characterizes local food systems. What Is the Issue? This study provides a
comprehensive literature-review-based overview of the current understanding of
local food systems, including: alternative defi nitions; estimates of market
size and reach; descriptions of the characteristics of local food consumers
and producers; and an examination of early evidence on the economic and health
impacts of such systems. What Did the Study Find? There is no generally
accepted definition of “local” food. Though “local” has a geographic
connotation, there is no consensus on a definition in terms of the distance
between production and consumption. Definitions related to geographic distance
between production and sales vary by regions, companies, consumers, and local
food markets. According to the definition adopted by the U.S. Congress in the
2008 Food, Conservation, and Energy Act,the total distance that a product can
be transported and still be considered a “locally or regionally produced
agricultural food product” is less than 400 miles from its origin, or within
the State in which it is produced. Definitions based on market arrangements,
including direct-to-consumer arrangements such as regional farmers’ markets,
or direct-to-retail/foodservice arrangements such as farm sales to schools,
are well-recognized categories and are used in this report to provide
statistics on the market development of local foods. Local food markets
account for a small but growing share of total U.S. agricultural sales. •
Direct-to-consumer marketing amounted to $1.2 billion in current dollar sales
in 2007, according to the 2007 Census of Agriculture, compared with $551
million in 1997. • Direct-to-consumer sales accounted for 0.4 percent of total
agricultural sales in 2007, up from 0.3 percent in 1997. If nonedible products
are excluded from total agricultural sales, direct-to consumer sales accounted
for 0.8 percent of agricultural sales in 2007. • The number of farmers’
markets rose to 5,274 in 2009, up from 2,756 in 1998 and 1,755 in 1994,
according to USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service. • In 2005, there were
1,144 community-supported agriculture organizations, up from 400 in 2001 and 2
in 1986, according to a study by the National Center for Appropriate
Technology. In early 2010, estimates exceeded 1,400, but the number could be
much larger. • The number of farm to school programs, which use local farms as
food suppliers for school meals programs and promote relationships between
schools and farms, increased to 2,095 in 2009, up from 400 in 2004 and 2 in
the 1996-97 school year, according to the National Farm to School Network.
Data from the 2005 School Nutrition and Dietary Assessment Survey, sponsored
by USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, showed that 14 percent of school
districts participated in Farm to School programs, and 16 percent reported
having guidelines for purchasing locally grown produce. Production of locally
marketed food is more likely to occur on small farms located in or near
metropolitan counties. Local food markets typically involve small farmers,
heterogeneous products, and short supply chains in which farmers also perform
marketing functions, including storage, packaging, transportation,
distribution, and advertising. According to the 2007 U.S. Census of
Agriculture, most farms that sell directly to consumers are small farms with
less than $50,000 in total farm sales, located in urban corridors of the
Northeast and the West Coast. In 2007, direct-to-consumer sales accounted for
a larger share of sales for small farms, as defi ned above, than for
medium-sized farms (total farm sales of $50,000 to $499,999) and large farms
(total farm sales of $500,000 or more). Produce farms engaged in local
marketing made 56 percent of total agricultural direct sales to consumers,
while accounting for 26 percent of all farms engaged in direct-to-consumer
marketing. Direct-to-consumer sales are higher for the farms engaged in other
entrepreneurial activities, such as organic production, tourism, and
customwork (planting, plowing, harvesting, etc. for others), than for other
farms. In 2007, direct sales by all U.S. farms surpassed customwork to become
the leading on-farm entrepreneurial activity in terms of farm household
participation. Barriers to local food-market entry and expansion include:
capacity constraints for small farms and lack of distribution systems for
moving local food into mainstream markets; limited research, education, and
training for marketing local food; and uncertainties related to regulations
that may affect local food production, such as food safety requirements.
Consumers who value high-quality foods produced with low environmental impact
are willing to pay more for locally produced food. Several studies have
explored consumer preferences for locally produced food. Motives for “buying
local” include perceived quality and freshness of local food and support for
the local economy. Consumers who are willing to pay higher prices for locally
produced foods place importance on product quality, nutritional value, methods
of raising a product and those methods’ effects on the environment, and
support for local farmers. Federal, State, and local government programs
increasingly support local food systems. Many existing government programs and
policies support local food initiatives, and the number of such programs is
growing. Federal policies have grown over time to include the Community Food
Project Grants Program, the WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program, Senior
Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program, Federal State Marketing Improvement
Program, National Farmers’ Market Promotion Program, Specialty Crop Block
Grant Program, and the Community Facilities Program. State and local policies
include those related to farm-to-institution procurement, promotion of local
food markets, incentives for low-income consumers to shop at farmers’ markets,
and creation of State Food Policy Councils to discuss opportunities and
potential impact of government intervention. (WIC is the acronym for the
Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children). As
of early 2010, there were few studies on the impact of local food markets on
economic development, health, or environmental quality. • Empirical research
has found that expanding local food systems in a community can increase
employment and income in that community. • Empirical evidence is insuffi cient
to determine whether local food availability improves diet quality or food
security. • Life-cycle assessments—analyses of energy use at all stages of the
food system including consumption and disposal—suggest that localization can
but does not necessarily reduce energy use or greenhouse gas emissions. How
Was the Study Conducted? Existing analyses of local food markets by
universities, government agencies, national nonprofit organizations, and
others of local food markets were synthesized to evaluate the definition of
local foods and the effects of local food systems on economic development,
health and nutrition, food security, and energy use and greenhouse gas
emissions. The report’s content relies on data collected through the 2007
Census of Agriculture, as well as other surveys by USDA’s Agricultural
Marketing Service, the National Farm to School Network, university extension
departments, and others, to provide a comprehensive picture of types of local
food markets, their characteristics, and their importance over time. |