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  • From: "Allan.Balliett" <allan.balliett AT gmail.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [Market-farming] Vetting Local Producers
  • Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:58:11 -0400

Dear Marketers=

A colleague of mine is writing a document to help localavores in our area to evaluate "producers" at local farmers markets.

What they want is a list of questions that, when answered, will allow anyone to determine if a vendor is offering food of authentic value to a localvore.

They've passed the document on to me for comment.

I thought it would be nice to get comments from this group, particularly from farmers like myself who whole heartedly support the 'local grower-only' concept of farmers marketing.

Thanks

-Allan in WV


==============================================================================================================================
The Document:

As part of the XXX Localvores community, we are in search of fresh, local, organic and delicious foods. Together, we are researching the multiple food options available in our community and sharing what we learn with one another in an effort to make available a comprehensive list of food sources for all of us in the XXXXX area.

Below are questions to consider for Localvores when researching & choosing food sources.
Distance: How far away is food grown/produced?
A good rule of thumb is ~100 mile radius. For a large metropolitan area, locavores can source food up to 250 miles. 200 miles around XXXX is a good compromise as pretty much everything we need can be found within this radius.

Size: Family farm, small business or large corporation?
Determine whether the food is being sourced directly from a small family farm, or a middleman business, or a large corporation. Confirm whether each food item is grown/raised on the farm "Producer only." There are some farms that will grow tomatoes for example, but then get some of their other produce items from other farms or even wholesale produce auctions!
Practices: Ask in-depth questions about growing/farming philosophy and processing questions. Some farmers are certified organic, others choose to follow an organic regimen but have not sought certification, others use an integration of organic/non-organic and some use only conventional methods (i.e. chemicals). Through a series of questions, you can help come up with a holistic picture of the farmer's growing practices and enable individuals to make the best choice for their situation.

When evaluating your food choices, it's not always possible to eat both local and organic, so how does one decide? Generally the suggested hierarchy of preference is:
1. Organic AND Local
2. Organic
3. Local
4. Conventional

Produce:
In general, what's important is to confirm that no chemicals are used in the soil or on the plants (herbicides, pesticides or artificial fertilizers). Non-Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) seed is preferred.
- Is the produce organic certified?
- Or does farm employ organic practices but just chose not to certify? If so, VERIFY.
- Confirm no pesticides/insecticides/chemicals used AT ALL
- How does farm fertilize - what is used? - What type of seeds are used? GMO/Non-GMO? What seed company do they use?

Meat:
In general, what's important is to confirm animals are raised free of antibiotics, hormones, and ideally live and eat as they would in nature. (i.e. Cows are rumins and therefore should not be fed grain. And most of all, they should NEVER be fed leftover scraps from slaughter houses).
- What breeds of animals do you raise?
- What are animals fed? Grass-based only? Grains? Soy?
o If grass-based, what form of grass-only fed in winter i.e. hay, etc
o If fed grains/corn, what grains specifically and what is the source? o A local mill? o What types of seeds are used? GMO/Non-GMO?
o Grown organically - chemical free?
o If fed soy, is it the whole soybean?
o What is source of soybean? o What type of seeds are used? GMO/Non-GMO? Seed company
o How is that soy grown? Organically? Chemical free?
o What processing plant do you use? (also called abboittoir)
- Confirm how animals raised
o Access to pasture? Rotational grazing?
o Antibiotic free? Horomone free? What happens if animal gets sick - do they give antibiotics?

Dairy/Cheeses
It's important to ask the same questions above in regards to the animal, in addition to understanding whether there are preservatives added and the method for milking.
- Are there any ingredients/additives in the cheese?
- How are the cows milked? (human or robotic)
- Under any circumstances are cows giving antibiotics and if so, does dairy production halt so as not to contaminate milk?
- Is the milk pasteurized? Raw?


Distribution: On site, mail order, farmers market, local stores?


*** SPECIAL NOTE *** These questions are not intended to be judgements in and of themselves of best practice. Our aim here is to ensure transparency so that individuals can choose to purchase the right item at the right time from the right farmer at the right price based on what makes the most sense for them. For example, a person with a soy or corn based allergy would choose a different meat product than another individual without this allergy.
Please leverage these questions as a way to begin an informed dialogue with the grower/farmer to better understand the full picture of their farming practice. Understanding the "Why" is just as if not more important as the simple answer to the question. It's through this dialogue that we can gain insight into what is going into our bodies and enable each of us to make the decision that is best for ourselves.




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