Presentation given at the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (SSAWG) Conference in Mobile AL - Jan 2015. Covers food hub definition, national trends, lessons learned and best practices from food hub managers, and USDA resources to support food hub growth and development

1. Food Hub Lessons:
Early Decisions
Jim Barham – USDA Rural Development, DC
Sara Clow – GrowFood Carolina, SC
Leslie Hossfeld – Feast Down East, NC
Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group Conference
Mobile, AL
January 17, 2015

2. Presentation Overview
Food Hubs:
 Clarifying the Food Hub Concept
 Early Decisions, Lessons Learned, Best Practices
 Sara Clow – GrowFood Carolina, SC
 Leslie Hossfeld – Feast Down East, NC
 Additional Reflections
 Resources to Support Food Hubs
 Open Discussion

3. Local/Regional Food Systems
Food Hubs
Aggregating Distributing Marketing Local Food

4. Regional Food Hubs
 Actively linking producers to markets
 On-farm pick up
 Production and post-harvest handling
training
 Business management services and
guidance
 Value-added product development
 Food safety and GAP training
 Liability insurance
 Aggregation
 Distribution
 Brokering
 Branding and market
development
 Packaging and repacking
 Light processing (trimming,
cutting, freezing)
 Product Storage
 “Buy Local” campaigns
 Distributing to “food deserts”
 Food bank donations
 Health screenings, cooking
demonstrations
 SNAP redemptions
 Educational programs
 Youth and community employment
opportunities

5. *Based on a working list of 302 food hubs identified by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (April 2014)
Regional Food Hubs

6. 7 12
26
44
53 55 58 63
75 87
101
119
153
184
215
256
286
298
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
220
240
260
280
300
Growth in the Number of Food Hubs (2001-2013)*
At least 145 food hubs have started in the past five years (2009-2013),
as well as at least 83 in the past three years (2011-2013)
*Based on a working list of 302 food hubs identified by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (April 2014)

7. Regional Food Hubs by Legal Status*
Food Hub Legal Status Number Percentage
Privately Held 144 48%
Nonprofit 87 29%
Cooperative 61 20%
Publicly Held 7 2%
Informal 3 1%
*Based on a working list of 302 food hubs identified by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (April 2014)

8. Regional Food Hub Models*
Farm to
Consumer
39%
Farm to
Business
29%
Hybrid
32%
*Based on a working list of 302 food hubs identified by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (April 2014)

9. GrowFood Carolina’s mission is to help the local food system reach its full
potential by providing meaningful opportunities to farmers
which will strengthen and secure the future of a regional food supply
and ensure an enduring productive and diverse landscape.
WHY (and how) does a conservation
organization start a food hub??

10. GrowFood Carolina (GFC) is:
A non profit, all local, wholesale produce distributor.
We provide:
• Crop planning
• Post harvest education
• Warehousing
• Sales & Marketing
• Distribution
• Vendor Compliance

11. GUIDING PRINCIPLES
1.Farmers. Farmers. Farmers.
2.Consistency
3.Collaboration
SET GOALS
RECOGNIZE
CHALLENGES
CREATE
SOLUTIONS
ANALYZE
RESULTS
REPEAT

12. EXPANDING THE MODEL

14. Feast Down East is a BUY LOCAL economic
development, poverty alleviation project, devoted to
supporting our local farmers through local food
purchasing in our region.
Our focus is on helping small to mid-sized limited-
resource farmers build and sustain their farm
businesses, connecting them with local food
businesses and educating consumers on the
importance of BUYING LOCAL!

15. HOW WE BEGAN – SECTOR ANALYSIS
Growth sectors of health and education;
- Emerging sectors of
entrepreneurship/small business and
recreation/tourism;
- Challenged sectors of agriculture/forestry
and manufacturing

16. Core 9-County Region
• New Hanover
• Brunswick
• Pender
• Columbus
• Robeson
• Bladen
• Onslow
• Duplin
• Sampson
- Most ethnically diverse region in rural America
- One of three regions of persistent poverty in NC
- Lost more farms than any other state in the US
- Average age of farmers is 57
Southeastern North
Carolina

17. OUR PRIMARY GOAL is to
Create a
Fully Integrated
Local Food System
.

18. FULLY INTEGRATED
FOOD SYSTEM -
Feast Down East
PRIORITY INITIATIVES
BUY LOCAL
Campaign
Farmer Support
Farm to School and
Farm to InstitutionFDE FOOD
HUB
Processing &
Distribution
Healthy
Communities
Program
Farm to Chef
Statewide Local Food
Movement

19. www.feastdowneast.org

20. USDA Designated
“Food Hub”

21. FARMERS
DIRECT SALES
FARMERS
MARKETS &
CSAs
CONSUMERS
RESTAURANTS
SCHOOLS/
UNIVERSITIES
FEAST DOWN
EAST P&D
HOSPITALS/
ASST. LIVING
GROCERS
TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE
MARKETING
Farmer Support

23. Farm to Chef
Farm to Chef Directory
Farm to Chef Partnership
Meetings
Over 40 Participating
Restaurants
26 Premier Restaurants

24. Farm to Institution
UNCW - Aramark
Hospitals
Assisted Living Facilities
 Whole Foods - Retail
 Lowes Foods - Retail
The
Green
Spot

25. Farm to School
• Teaching Nutrition, Gardening & Local
Agriculture in the Classroom
• Building School Gardens
• Increasing Fresh Fruits & Vegetables in
the Cafeteria
• Public Housing Neighborhoods
After-School Garden Program

27. Healthy Communities Program
Addresses the lack of healthy food in
our underserved communities –
“Food Deserts”

29. Local and State-wide Partners in
the Local Food Movement

30. Local Food Means Economic Development
Multiplier Effect - The information in this table is based on 73 workers directly
employed in farm and food-related jobs in 7 counties (Bladen, Brunswick,
Columbus, New Hanover, Pender, Robeson and Sampson). All figures 1Q2013.
Type of Impact Impact
Output $22.6 million
Employment (a) 180
Labor Income (b) $6.2 million
State/Local Government
Taxes
$1.2 million
Federal Taxes $1.2 million
(a) Fulltime and Part time
Employment
(b) Wages and salaries and self-
employment income
Prepared by: Dr. William Hall
UNCW Senior Economist

31. FOOD POLICY
COUNCILS
Food Policy Councils examine how the local food
system operates, and provide policy
recommendations to improve that system.
Food Policy Councils identify and strengthen the
connections between food, health, natural
resource protection, economic development
and the agricultural/food production community.

32. SAVE THE DATE!
February 6th
Feast Down East 5th Annual Regional Conference
Burney Center
University of North Carolina Wilmington
Wilmington, North Carolina

33. Food Hub Best Practices
– NINE Keys to Successful Marketing for Food Hubs –
 Don’t sell commodities
– Product differentiation is key (unique product attributes, source identified, production
practices, social equity), telling a compelling story, branding, chain transparency,
certifications
 Sweat the small stuff
– To tell an authentic and compelling story, all staff need to know every detail of the
production and handling practices of the product sold under the brand (even the truck
drivers!)
 Be there all year for your customers
– Must sustain operations year round to cover costs and keep customer communication
constant. Be pragmatic about your approach in terms of sourcing “locally”
 Get buyer commitment
– Be clear with buyers about volume order expectations and use a combination of
specials, incentives, rewards, public recognition for “committed” buyers

34.  Think farmers first
– Ensure good prices for producers and find ways to build their capacity to grow and be
successful. What kind of relationship and interaction, individually, as group, co-op?
 Make friends
– Seek operational advantages by seeking partnerships with existing distribution
infrastructure players, e.g., existing distributors, producer groups, trucking companies,
food banks, etc.
 Don’t buy what you don’t need
– Infrastructure investment (e.g. warehouse, trucks, equipment) needs to match the
hubs’ stage of development and marketing capacity.
 Don’t poison your customers
– Food safety needs to be an integral part of the whole operation, with food safety plans
for producers, GAP/GHP, traceability/recall mechanisms in place.
 Never forget “supply, supply, supply”
– Without ensuring a consistent, reliable supply of quality products, you have no business
running a food hub, and you will have no business!
Food Hub Best Practices
– NINE Keys to Successful Marketing for Food Hubs –

35. OPEN DISCUSSION
QUESTIONS, COMMENTS?

36. Moving Food Along the Value Chain:
Innovations in Regional Food Distribution
By Adam Diamond & James Barham – USDA Agricultural Marketing
Service
Regional Food Hub Resource Guide
Food hub impacts on regional food systems, and the
resources available to support their growth and development
By USDA Agricultural Marketing Service and the Wallace Center at
Winrock International
The Role of Food Hubs in Local Food Marketing
By James Matson, Martha Sullins, and Chris Cook – funded by USDA Rural
Development
Food Hub and Distribution Resources
Electronic copies of these publications can be downloaded
for free at www.ams.usda.gov/FoodHubs

37.  Food Value Chains: Creating
Shared Value to Enhance
Marketing Success – joint project
between USDA and the Wallace Center
 The report is designed to provide
guidance to the reader on how
food value chains are initiated
and structured, how they
function, and the benefits they
provide to participants.
New Report on Food Value Chains
http://dx.doi.org/10.9752/MS141.05-2014

38. USDA’s Food Hub Portal
www.ams.usda.gov/FoodHubs
A catalogue of USDA's research findings, resources,
and support for food hubs
Food Hub and Distribution Resources
National Food Hub Collaboration
http://foodhub.info
Map and list of known food hubs, current news,
webinars, conference proceedings, print resources
Food Hub Benchmarking Webinar on Thursday!

39. www.usda.gov/knowyourfarmer
 Website: One-stop shop for financial
and technical assistance resources from
USDA to grow your local food enterprise
www.usda.gov/knowyourfarmer
 The Compass: How USDA resources
are put to work in your community
www.usda.gov/kyfcompass
 The Compass Map: See what’s
funded in your community and learn
how others are using USDA programs
USDA’s “Know Your Farmer,
Know Your Food” Initiative

40. Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food:
- Resources for Navigating USDA -
www.usda.gov/knowyourfarmer

41.  Farm Microloans
 Farm Storage Loans
 Organic Cost Share
 Grass-fed Verification
 Environmental Quality
Incentives Program
(hoop houses/high
tunnels)
 Rural Energy for
America Program
USDAProgramsintheLocalFoodSupplyChain
 Business and Industry
Guaranteed Loans
 Community Facilities
Loans and Grants
 Rural Business
Enterprise Grants
 Rural Business
Opportunity Grants
 Value-Added Producer
Grants
 Local Food Promotion
Program
 Conservation
Reserve Program
 Agricultural
Conservation
Easement Program
 Conservation
Stewardship
Program
 Environmental
Quality Incentives
Program
 Business and Industry
Guaranteed Loans
 Community Facilities
Loans and Grants
 Rural Business
Enterprise Grants
 Rural Business
Opportunity Grants
 Local Food Promotion
Program
 Specialty Crop Block
Grants
 Farm to School Grants
 Senior Farmers’ Market
Nutrition Program
 WIC Farmers’ Market
Nutrition Program
 Community Food
Projects Competitive
Grants
 Farmers Market
Promotion Program
 Specialty Crop Block
Grants
Land
Conservation
Processing
www.usda.gov/knowyourfarmer
Aggregation/
Distribution
Production Markets /
Consumers
 Rural Cooperative Development Grants
 Small Business Innovation Research
 Risk Management Education Program
 Federal State Marketing Improvement Program
 Conservation Technical Assistance
 Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program
 Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program
 Agriculture and Food Research Initiative
Research, Education, and Technical Assistance Programs – all along the supply chain

42. Includes data on:
 USDA-funded local food projects
 Farmers markets, food hubs,
and other “context data”
gathered by USDA agencies
 Projects and resources from
9 other Federal Departments
The KYF Compass Map
www.usda.gov/kyfcompass

43. Explore Options, Partnerships,
and Opportunities

44. Find Resources to Fit the Need
www.usda.gov/kyfcompass

45. Jim Barham
USDA Rural Development
Washington, D.C.
202-690-1411
James.Barham@wdc.usda.gov
www.usda.gov/kyfcompass
www.usda.gov/knowyourfarmer
knowyourfarmer@usda.gov
Thank You!