COMMODITIES, CONSUMERS, AND COMMUNITIES:
LOCAL FOOD SYSTEMS IN A GLOBALIZING ENVIRONMENT

Agriculture and food systems in the United States have changed dramatically over the past 50 years. Smaller, family-labor farms have declined substantially in number with larger, capital intensive operations now supplying the bulk of the nationÆs agricultural products. As agriculture modernized, it also regionalized. Regions characterized by diverse agricultural activities have been driven to exploit their 'comparative advantage.' Thus, self sufficiency in food production within a region is now nonexistent, with most areas enjoying little or no locally produced food in commercial channels.

A diverse array of community-based organizations (CBOs), as well as national and regional entities, have responded to these disturbing trends with efforts to revitalize localized food systems through interactions among local farmers, retailers, processors and consumers. Efforts supported by a number of foundations, several federal programs, and local initiatives have increased the capacity of these organizations to realize this vision. These efforts, however, continue to occur within the context of large scale, regionally concentrated agricultural producers, national and multinational food processors, and distributors.

Important environmental, social, political and economic reasons justify the reemergence of a smaller scale, more locally controlled food system. Community supported agriculture (CSA), farmer's markets, specialized agricultural districts, alternative food stores and consumer cooperatives represent important manifestations of a newly emerging type of agriculture that is taking shape throughout the U.S. These new organizational forms have the potential to nurture local economic development, maintain diversity and quality in products, and provide forums where producers and consumers can come together to solidify bonds of local identity and solidarity.

Little analysis exists, however of these attempts to develop more locally controlled food systems. Likewise, there is a lack of understanding about the complex path that commodities follow as they are transformed from production to consumption. An understanding of these commodity pathways and their relation to emerging localized food systems is important to the sustainability of localizing efforts.

Beliefs, values and preferences of community stakeholders influence both the direction of change in a food and agriculture system and what it provides to communities. Ultimately, the sustainability of current and future community-based efforts towards creating food security and more localized food systems will depend on the choices that community members make in the marketplace. Yet, little is known or understood about the way in which the complex social and technical relations embedded in these choices are maintained or changed.

Relationships between this dominant food system paradigm and the emerging local food systems are complex, geographically dispersed, and heavily influenced by policy. Interactions and implications are poorly understood. An absence of a research base and limited connectivity and generalization to activities in other areas are typical. The project described in this brief will provide critical information concerning future directions in our food system from a community and global perspective. It will do this while maintaining connectivity to those communities under study. We will identify the structural transformations taking place in the U.S. food and agricultural system, examine the forces behind these changes, and evaluate the strategies that producers, processors, consumers, households, and communities are using to manage these changes.

Toward this end, the project has four broad objectives:

Through this multi-state, multi-institution approach, a base of information and analysis will be developed that delineates the dynamics in the existing food system from a number of perspectives and actively contributes to ongoing educational and programmatic efforts.

Since local food systems are site specific, efforts to untangle the social, economic, and political dimension will be enhanced by taking both a regional and national approach. Regional differences will provide opportunities for contrast, especially for robust model development. Comparing communities, consumers, and commodities will aid in the understanding of the local, national and global forces now operating.

All collaborators are connected with a variety of CBOÆs, local institutions, and foundations in their regions. Partnerships with these entities are critical in weaving a rich web of relationships and networks through which to gain and transmit information broadly. The project results will be designed to support the activities of CBOÆs across the country. Ongoing consultation and input from CBOs throughout the project will ensure that results are relevant. A major goal of this project is to become an important resource to these and other stakeholders, and to inform productive changes in the food system.

The research completed through this project will help identify practical ways for rural communities to establish and reinvigorate local agricultural economies, provide research-based approaches to rural-urban connections, as well as aid in identifying urban needs connected to these issues. CBOs will be able to use this information to support their work with local constituents; state and local governments can use it to inform their policy decisions; while land-grant and other higher education institutions can use it to inform resource allocations. Farmers and smaller-scale food processors will benefit from the information we will gather from consumers about the demand for locally grown and processed food. Consumers will also benefit from this research through identification of demands and strategies to overcome existing barriers that restrict access to products and information.