Local Food Procurement

There are many initiatives underway in the New England region designed to support a thriving sustainable regional food system. Among these, there has been recent enthusiasm for efforts to bring local and sustainable food to large institutional purchasers, including local governments, school districts, and state agencies. Advocates and government representatives promoting local food purchasing see institutional contracts as a useful tool to help scale up demand for — and production of — local food in the region.

New England State Governments: Barriers and Recommendations Report

Under a grant from the John Merck Fund, RPN conducted research to identify the best practices for institutional purchasing of local food in the New England region. Though the complexity of fresh food purchasing can form barriers to large-scale change, a behind-the-scenes look at food purchasing allowed RPN to provide recommendations for overcoming each challenge.

Key barriers identified include:

• The contracting process can inadvertently leave out smaller farmers
• Many contracts lump locally-available products in with food that is not produced locally — literally apples with oranges
• “Local” food is defined differently by different stakeholders — by miles, by state borders, or even by the region

Key recommendations and best practices include:

• Use minimum requirements rather than broad “preferences” which are harder to implement and evaluate
• Design contracts to build a role for distributors that source local food — this allows flexibility according to season and availability
• Eliminate unnecessary contract restrictions, such as “white eggs” when white or brown eggs will do
• Handle produce separately in contracting documents, so that requirements can be more produce-specific

The recommendations are intended for purchasing officials to implement, but are explained in a way that is accessible for advocates and inside institutional champions such as State Departments of Agriculture. Ultimately, they are designed to advance institutional purchasing to contribute to a strong New England farm and food system.

Download the Report: Local and Sustainable Food Procurement by New England State Governments: Barriers and Recommendations (2014)

RPN Webinar: Local and Sustainable Food Procurement: Best Practices of Northeastern State Governments - April 9, 2014

Is your state government interested in expanding purchase of locally and sustainably farmed agricultural products? Creating markets for these products can contribute to the regional economy, preserve farmland and support a thriving, healthy food system.

Listen in to an RPN webinar supported by the John Merck Fund that highlighted best practices developed in the New England region to foster state government procurement of local and sustainable food.

This webinar covered strategies to:

• Structure contracts to best encourage local offerings;
• Work with vendors over time to increase local purchasing;
• Support distributors that source produce from the region; and
• Use policy to build greater vendor accountability.

This webinar featured:

• Mark Curran, Black River Produce, Vermont
• Mark Izeman, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York
• Jane Slupecki, Department of Agriculture, Connecticut
• Sarah Church, Research Analyst, RPN (moderator)

Download the Webinar: Local and Sustainable Food Procurement: Best Practices of Northeastern State Governments - April 9, 2014