Food System Futures in Appalachia
Sustainable Development Internship - Spring 2023
The Problem:
Large-scale forces influencing the food system at a global level have impacted our local and regional food system, and the consequences will continue to be severe if change is not made.
- To explore the ways in which large scale forces at the global level have impacted our local and regional food system, the FSDL SDI's work has aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals 2, 12, and 13:
- SDG 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
- SDG 12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
- SDG 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
Appalachia is composed of small, rural food system economies that do not fit within the traditional economic conditions of large-scale agriculture. This, in part, has led to a variety of economic, social, and environmental problems.
- Over the past decade there has been a movement from local food initiatives to regional food system initiatives in West Virginia, this has called for:
- The creation of new institutions and the transformation of existing institutions to support on-farm production
- Logistical networks
- Market development
The FSDL SDI research experience this semester sought to explore the means in which students could assist community members in developing a regional food system that could lead to more robust local economies and serve as a building block for the transitioning communities of Central Appalachia.
Our Project:
Community Partner: Garrett Growers Cooperative
- Garrett Growers is a producer’s cooperative, owned by the farmers it serves, based out of Garrett County, Maryland.
- Garrett Growers have been growing and providing a wide variety of fresh produce items for over ten years in our region of Appalachia.
- Growing methods vary from organic to conventional, with an emphasis on careful land management, limited use of chemicals, and safe, family owned and operated agriculture.
To explore the solutions that our community members are working on, we met with a variety of parties involved in the region's food system in Philippi, WV in a meeting through Garrett Growers:
Pictures from community meeting in Philippi, WV.
Notes from Philippi meeting
From the meeting we determined a decentralized aggregation model, in which producers and consumers are in direct contact within the system, was ideal.
In our region, a new distribution route or loop, the Northern Distribution Route, was proposed.
- In order to begin implementation, several needs of the community were discussed:
- GIS Coordination including databases, mapping/routing, and logistics
- Extended outreach to potential customers and market opportunities
- An expansion of existing food related programs with more opportunities for community involvement
We also conducted an interview with Willie Lantz, one of the directors of Garrett Growers, to further refine our understanding of Garrett Growers and the community partners involved in their cooperative and to explore how we can fit in and best assist.
Proposed Solution: A decentralized regional food system in our Appalachian region.
Regional food systems connect producers of food, food businesses, and consumers in the same geographic region, improving local economies and the health, environment, and community of the region.
Existing Route (Southern Distribution Route)
This map displays the route Garrett Growers is currently conducting operations with.
Proposed Northern Distribution Route
Participatory Mapping Points from the Philippi meeting:
Time Buffer on Routes
- Calculated regions that were 0-5 minutes, 5-10 minutes, and 10-30 minutes away from the route to prioritize specific points of interest
Initial Inventory of Potential Customers
- Gathered data across West Virginia and Maryland to find potential customers
- Reconfigured information from tables into a dataset with spatial components to delineate location
Took the initial inventory of potential customers and identified those locations within time buffers
Final Product
- Worked within each dataset to create a cohesive data structure for clarity when individual datasets combined
- Combined all the data to create one large dataset of existing and potential consumers
- The final product gives Garrett Growers the agency to explore new business opportunities with easier coordination
Producer & Consumer Analysis
To further analyze the data collected through GIS mapping we decided to contact producers and consumers within the identified region.
ArcGIS Survey 123
An ArcGIS tool used to complete and analyze surveys as well as map the specific location of the producer linked with the particular data provided in the survey.
Conducting the Survey
- Producers entered their address into the survey to see where they are located on the Route.
- This aided the process of visualizing where the producer lies in relation to the Northern - and Southern Distribution Route
- In order to create the most efficient and cost effective route for the transport of produce along the Distribution Routes.
- Data was collected in the Month of March 2023
- The survey was sent to 25 producers respectively and 7 responses were recorded.
Survey Results
- 7 producers were willing to cooperate with Garrett Growers in loop.
- Travel time range:
- 0-5 min: 1
- 5-15 min: 3
- 15-30 min: 1
- Outside 30 min: 2
- On site facilities:
- 5 Dry storage
- 6 Cold storage
- 3 Freezer storage
- 3 Wash stations
- 5 Packing facilities
- 1 Certified kitchen
- Transportation:
- 1 Refrigerated delivery truck
- 1 Standard Truck
- 3 Pickup trucks
- Average sales:
- $0 - $5000: 3
- $40 000 - $60 000: 2
- > $60 000: 2
3 Full-time farmers
Key findings
- Most of the farms are located within 5-15 min of the loop.
- Most respondents are willing to transport their product to the GG route and aggregate products from regional producers.
- The average number one ranked sales sector is individuals with institutions, such as schools, being a close second. CSAs are ranked last for best sales sector sold to by farmers.
- Common barriers to production:
- Employment of staff
- Labor
- Time
- Funding (capital)
- Finding food buyers
- Identifying markets
Market Analysis & Future Application
Along with producer and consumer analysis, we used the data collected using GIS to conduct a review of potential community supported agriculture (CSA) customers along the route.
Through several conversations and a formal interview with Willie Lantz, we collectively determined:
- There is a potential for a non-traditional market opportunity along the route that we can assist with: CSA
- A model with a non-centralized aggregation system (multiple food packing locations across different areas) is ideal.
- A pilot program and initial trial software was needed.
CSA: Community Supported Agriculture
- System that closely connects producers and consumers within the food system
- Allows the consumer to subscribe to a weekly box of harvest from locally grown products.
- Alternative socioeconomic model of agriculture and food distribution that allows the producer and consumer to share the risks of farming.
Research
- In order to gain a better understanding of what CSAs are and how they work, initial research was done on logistical models of CSAs and potential software that could be used.
- Using ArcGIS Business Analysts we identified key businesses along the route
Key Findings
- Through review of existing CSA models, both large and small, an initial program and schedule was devised to work in conjunction with the proposed northern loop.
- A viable program to operate CSA logistics was found and will be trialed.
- As opposed to traditional CSAs, operating at this regional scale requires finding aggregated points of customers rather than individuals.
Proposed Schedule:
Call to Action
Next Step: Firsthand-CSA
How can we apply our work this semester, along with our community partners work, to establish and maintain market connections in our region?
- Through the proposed loop, there is potential for the establishment of a market between cooperatives, Firsthand and Garrett Growers, within the CSA program
Firsthand Coffee Cooperative
Worker owned coffee company based in Morgantown with community partners in West Virginia and Nicaragua, connecting producers and consumers in our communities.
Moving Forward:
- Firsthand has the potential to act as an aggregation of customers for a CSA order.
- Through Firsthand, customers can order CSA boxes from Garrett Growers and have them delivered here in Morgantown.
- There may be a potential market for Firsthand coffee to be purchased in each CSA order as well.
- We are working to establish a pilot program of this CSA through Firsthand with a few customers to establish an initial transaction.
- Connects cooperatives in our region
- Establishes an initial market in the proposed distribution loop
- Provides an avenue for university involvement in local economies
Outcomes
- Database
- GIS Logistical Model
- Participatory Mapping
- Ongoing Producer Survey
- Results
- Analysis
- Ongoing Consumer Survey
- CSA Pilot Program
- Opportunity for Collaboration Among Cooperatives
Regional Food System Development: Closing Remarks
- Through GIS there is an opportunity to facilitate coordination between producers and consumers in a decentralized regional food system.
- Cooperation among producers and consumers is essential to creating and maintaining a sustainable food system.
- There must be an open, continual process of communication and collaboration within a food system.
- More work must be done to establish non-traditional market opportunities for buying and selling within the region.
- More direct market connections between producers and consumers could be established