This page was created by Maria Frank. 

Field Guides to Food

"Local & Community-Based" criterion for Real Food Challenge: Examples

The following are examples of the kinds of issues addressed by the "local & community-based" category of the RFC, and give us a sense of why these are important:

First, a 4-minute video highlighting a joint program of The Minnesota Project and Farmers' Legal Action Group to work with immigrant farmers to increase their income and the sustainability of their farming occupation. This project is an example of an effort to connect local producers with interested and dependable buyers (area universities), so that both parties reap the benefits.

This is followed by a report written by a CURA research assistant that explores this topic in more depth and was, in fact, prepared in partnership with The Minnesota Project. Facilitating Small Farmer's Access to New Sales Channels in Minnesota investigates the obstacles that retail buyers perceive when transporting, ordering, and purchasing from local producers, and suggests strategies for overcoming those obstacles.


Next, an hour-long interview (accompanied by a searchable PDF transcript) with organic farmer Ryan Batalden, who shares what he has learned and experienced since starting in the business He touches on many of the economic considerations of local producers, specific organic farming methods, and what resources he recommends.

The following resource balances Batalden's personal narrative account with a peer-reviewed qualitative research report on the quality of life of producers and their families.

Finally, an hour-long talk given by Prof. Randel Hanson of the University of Minnesota Duluth on the growth of the local food movement and its social, economic, and ecological impacts on the food system.

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