Mid-Atlantic Small Black Farmers Food Distribution Project

Mid-Atlantic Small Black Farmers Food Distribution Project

Summary

In 2009, four Maryland farmers, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Small Farms Coordinator, and 4 Philadelphia outreach professionals met at the UMES campus to discuss the viability of deploying a regional distribution network that would engage small local minority Maryland farmers with the inner city communities in providing produce using a buyers club purchasing model, which would enhance the Philadelphia area’s urban communities’ awareness of the importance in supporting local and regional produce growers as well as understanding the importance of managing their health through eating fresh foods.

A separate discussion in 2009 was also coordinated and held between the same Philadelphia outreach professionals, 1 Lancaster, PA area and 3 Delaware Valley small farm growers to provide small land plots for a cultivating project that will engage minority city youth from the Philadelphia area to learn the practical science of agriculture and its importance towards attaining a healthy way of life.

After receiving an extension for this project, additional farmer networking was accomplished, thus enabling the black farmers’ food distribution initiative to be successful during the 2010 fall crop cycle. This pilot effort, met notable expectations with positive recipient appreciation for fresh food delivered into the target communities, a heightened awareness of the historical and systemic problems facing black farmers, and the overwhelmingly positive response to the fresh produce that was delivered into the target neighborhoods that traditionally lack direct access to high quality, fresh, local produce. Additionally, greater appreciation for agricultural science was achieved through the education component “People Play with Dirt” program.

Objectives/Performance Targets

Performance targets in this project is to create an awareness and appreciation of the interdependency between the recipient communities and their contributing food growers; educate the youth of the recipient communities about the practical science of agriculture and food production; foster a interest in the agricultural industry for youth in such communities, and encourage the target communities to establish healthy grocery food stores in their neighborhoods; and encourage minority farmers to create and utilize a distribution system which will foster the desire to reestablish themselves and compete in the american food markets.

Accomplishments/Milestones

Project Events

– March, April 2010,
– Inventory Solaris database server for housing farmer contact information and inventory of produce provided to help ourselves project. Postgresql version 8 database system installed to manage the data on Solaris operating system.

– April 2010,

– Provided documentation and presentation slides on a strategy that will be used to engage SARE farmer participants to have access to the internet, use the internet to augment their communications capabilities and enhance their business operations.
– Visited two small black farmers in southern New Jersey and discussed the prospect of leveraging their farms as a place to facilitate the “People Play with Dirt” program to be implemented later in the 2010 year.

– June, July, August, September 2010,

– Enhanced website for promoting and providing more information on black American farmers.
– Held a number of discussions with the UMES small farms coordinator to discuss deployment of a shipping point for the participating farmers to deliver their food for shipment to the Philadelphia region. Discussed delivery challenges that each farmer was faced with. Held discussions with 2 farmers (1 Pennsylvania farmer and 1 New Jersey farmer) for leveraging one of their farms for the “People Play with Dirt” education program.

– October 2010,

– Implemented the “People Play with Dirt” program in Aatco, NJ to promote awareness and interest in agricultural science as well as more appreciation for food growers for the Philadelphia region’s poorer urban communities. Samples of freshly picked produce were provided for the attendees.
– Executed pursuit efforts and made contact and made produce delivery arrangements with neighborhood stores, neighborhood take out restaurants, lunch truck vendors, caterers, individuals and families in Philadelphia, PA, Newark, DE and Wilmington, DE.

– November, December 2010,

– Attended the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Small Farmer’s conference and networked with farmers at this event.
– Made arrangements and picked up produce from Maryland black farmers for delivery into the afore-mentioned target neighborhoods.
– Purchased preserved by-products created by black farm produce (pickled beets, canned (jarred) lima beans, and relish) from the MD farmers as well. Produce was distributed into northern Delaware and the Philadelphia, PA regions. Delivery recipients were institutions, local corner stores and restaurants, families, individuals and organizations in Philadelphia, PA , Newark, DE and Wilmington, DE.
– Produce and their by-products was prepared, cleaned, packaged and delivered from the
following fall crops:
Beets, Broccoli, Lima Beans, Cabbage, Greens (Kale, Collard, Mustard & Turnip Greens),
White Potatoes, Peppers, Sweet White and Sweet Yellow Potatoes.

– January 2011,

– Created pilot thin PHP SQL client workstation for demonstrating an application web-based access to the backend distribution inventory system. Configuration is still on-going for this component.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

Price negotiations were a major challenge with the participating Maryland farmers. Scheduling conflicts developed as the 2009 harvest matured. The success of the distribution process and the timing for marketing and promoting the produce to the neighborhood areas weighed heavily on the success of negotiating prices with the participating farmers. It became clear that the 2009 harvest year had become a “trial, error and discovery” period for project and, therefore the 2010 harvest year would be more ideal to deliver this initiative by adhering to the lessons learned from the experiences in 2009.
Because of due diligence networking and negotiations with black farmers inside the Northeast SARE region, Help Ourselves Project was able to successfully deliver fresh food to neighborhood restaurants, caterers, individuals and families in Philadelphia and its proxy regions. Help Ourselves Project was also able to overcome scheduling conflicts with the participating farmers and established delivery schedules with the participating farmers residing in the state of Maryland. Farm produce information and farm contact information was updated into a database inventory system.
Additionally, Help Ourselves Project has made an agreement to have a meeting set up with two additional Maryland black farms in February 2011. Help Ourselves Project leveraged the 2010 fall harvest season during the months of November and December of 2011 with 2 Maryland black farms executing price negotiations, pickup arrangement and delivery of their fall crops. Furthermore Help Ourselves Project wants to continue the mission of equipping the partner farmers with computer and internet skill sets that will enable them to compete in the e-commerce area.

Collaborators: