Capitalizing On The Locally Grown Movement
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Permalink Reply by Greg on -
Local is being capitalized like never before by all retail outlets. Albertsons definition is within their region is "local". Others have a within the state (Walmart) limit, or some confine it to a milage.
An interesting concept I see coming out of New Zealand is the use of the word "Foodshed" , much like we use the word watershed. It is more of a geographical term, not limited by miles or borders, but the natural market area and growing area for certain foods. Since the term "Local" has no legal constraints, maybe we should set a limit legally for what is grown and sold within our "foodshed", and start educating the public about local foodsheds.
Greg
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Permalink Reply by Jack Ellis on -
I don't understand why "locally-grown" has sales appeal. Here in our rural southern area, people couldn't care less where their vegetables are grown. They like tomatoes that taste good and fresh corn, etc, but it's all about quality, taste and price. If Walmart has California tomatoes that are better (or just as good and cheaper) than ours, I can assure you that they wouldn't buy ours just because they are "local." I just don't know what this is all about - why would consumers care where something is grown?
Jack
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Permalink Reply by Bob Due on
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My customers are looking for quality and flavor. Most of them have found that these qualities are better in locally grown food that is grown under natural conditions in soil that has all the nutrients (major and minor) available to the growing plant.
If some distant grower was doing the same thing that I am and shipping to the local grocer, then I would have no advantage over the grocer except customer loyalty. That is one thing that I do not lack because my customers have found that my produce is almost always better than even others in the local markets.
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Permalink Reply by Hank Connelly on -
Jack, The difference here in Ga is that we grow specific varieties that are bred for quality of taste, size, and color. Supermarket tomatoes are grown for quantity, shippability, ease of picking etc. The local chain this week is selling cantalopes for $1.68 this week but they have no taste or smell to them. When our local cantalopes come in you can smell them as you walk past them. Picked at the peak of ripeness rather than a contract shipping date, brings big flavors to the 'local produce'. Our customers confirm this again and again so I'm a believer.
Hank
Jack Ellis said:
I don't understand why "locally-grown" has sales appeal. Here in our rural southern area, people couldn't care less where their vegetables are grown. They like tomatoes that taste good and fresh corn, etc, but it's all about quality, taste and price. If Walmart has California tomatoes that are better (or just as good and cheaper) than ours, I can assure you that they wouldn't buy ours just because they are "local." I just don't know what this is all about - why would consumers care where something is grown?
Jack
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Permalink Reply by Jack Ellis on
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That's true, Hank - "local" stuff is usually better because of the reasons you state. I guess this is just a matter of semantics, but local doesn't necessarily always mean higher quality.
As you know, I manage a charity-non-profit operation with numerous growers contributing their time and effort to grow things for our vegetable stand. Often some of these well-meaning folks bring stuff to sell at the stand that's green-picked or overripe, stunted, bug-eaten - really sorry-looking stuff. They're proud of it though, and it puts me in the unenviable position of hurting their feelings or angering them if I reject it. Unless there's a health consideration (spoiled etc), I usually don't reject it, but I really should for the sake and reputation of our project. Last year a dear, sweet lady brought several bushels of yellow squash that were badly green-streaked! I told her we couldn't use them and that I would give her some hybrid seed that would resist that. Tears whelled up in her eyes. She had worked sooo hard on growing it. I can handle it when they get mad, but that broke my heart.
This is a unique situation - but I've seen a lot of home-grown stuff on the road around here that I wouldn't feed to the hogs - like sweet corn with earworm damage half-way down the ear! My point is that some other term might serve better than "local."
Jack
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Permalink Reply by Russell Meeker on
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People in our area do care that the produce is grown locally and pick fresh. I grown and run a local roadside stand and our customers tell us the day we close that they can't wait till we open again. They get tired of the produce they get in the supermarkets with no taste. I am also a believer in fresh produce and the appeal it has to our customers. We grow our produce 3 miles from our stand and advertize it accordingly. People like that.
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Permalink Reply by Greg on
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Ditto. Quality control Jack. My customers are like Russells, as they can't buy marginal produce from my "for profit" farm market. If you are truelly local, you should have intrinsic metering of what is on your shelves, and it shouldn't take 2nd base to that produce that is sold by distributors in large stores, at any stage. THAT is why all the large grocery firms are trying to jump on the LOCAL bandwagon, and we are not trying to exploit the regional, nationwide, and worldly sales. Quality sells.
Greg
Russell Meeker said:People in our area do care that the produce is grown locally and pick fresh. I grown and run a local roadside stand and our customers tell us the day we close that they can't wait till we open again. They get tired of the produce they get in the supermarkets with no taste. I am also a believer in fresh produce and the appeal it has to our customers. We grow our produce 3 miles from our stand and advertize it accordingly. People like that.
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Permalink Reply by Mark Schindlbeck on -
Maybe there should be an expansion of the C.O.O.L. regulation where the actual physical location of the produce is identified. For us here, local tree fruit is 50 plus miles away.
What our farm does is to promote "Truly Homegrown" vegetables. This way customers know that what they get from us was grown by us.
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