Fostering Local Foods-Based Economic Development Strategies: Developing New Resources and Networks

Fostering Local Foods-Based Economic Development Strategies: Developing New Resources and Networks

Summary

Steady progress is being made on the project with two of the Guide Sheets out for peer review and two regional workshops have been conducted with two or three more in production.   Participant surveys were conducted at the conclusion of each workshop and a six-month follow-up impact survey has been designed and distribution will begin in May, 2014.

Objectives/Performance Targets

Our key objectives for 2013 were to get the first of the guide sheets published and to hold a statewide conference.

Two guide sheets have been written, but are tied up in the University’s design and peer review process. We still anticipate publishing the guide sheets, but the process is taken a bit longer than we had anticipated.

Considerable time was spent planning for the 2013 statewide conference that was to be held November 13-14 at the Bradford Farm on the MU Campus in Columbia. However, after beginning our marketing for the conference we found that there as limited interest in a two-day statewide conference and that there was much more support for regional conferences. In addition, we were approached by the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank as a potential co-sponsor. Based on that, we are scheduling regional one-day workshops across the state.

Development of the website continues, although a little slower than we had anticipated due to internal approval process. We anticipate that it will be launched later this summer.

Information on Project Staffing

During 2013 we lost one team member to a promotion and another team member was out for several months due to maternity leave which slowed down progress on our outcomes. At this time a new team member has not been identified to join the team

Accomplishments/Milestones

Based on input from our target audiences, we shifted from a multi-day, statewide conference to a series of regional workshops. Partnering with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, we constructed an agenda that focused on the opportunity for job and business creation. Two workshops, titled “Food Entrepreneurship: A New Way of Thinking about Local Food and Jobs,” have been held so far with three more planned for 2014.

Cape Girardeau: November 14, 2013 – 35 attendees (5 Extension Educators and the remainder were economic development staff, community leaders, business owners, etc.)

Macon: December 12, 2013 – 44 attendees (17 Extension Educators and the remainder were economic development staff, community leaders, business owners, etc.)

Upcoming: Lebanon April 4, 2014; Northwest Missouri TBD and possible St. Louis or Columbia.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

Workshop Outcomes

Cape Girardeau: November 14, 2013

• 35 attendees (3 Extension Educators)

• Overall rating 4.2 on 5pt scale

• Change in skills, knowledge and understanding before/after workshop on 5 pt scale:

  • Entrepreneurship Potential 3.1/4.0

  • How local foods stimulate economic development 3.5/4.1

  • Food Hubs 2.5/3.8

  • Incubators and Kitchens (shared, commercial, etc.)2.2/3.9

Macon: December 12, 2013

• 44 attendees (16 Extension Educators)

• Overall rating 4.3 on 5pt scale

• Change in skills, knowledge and understanding before/after workshop on 5 pt scale:

  • Entrepreneurship Potential 3.0/3.84

  • How local foods stimulate economic development 3.0/3.81

  • Food Hubs 2.4/3.81

  • Incubators and Kitchens (shared, commercial, etc.) 2.2/3.75

Each workshop agenda included presentations on local food systems; a definition of and discussion about the appropriate role for incubators, shared use kitchens, commercial kitchens in developing and supporting the local food system; presentations from local growers/producers on their operations, challenges and successes; presentation by local Extension Educators on programming and outreach in the region; and, a World Café session that asked participants to discuss steps that need to be taken in the region to foster local foods.   Each workshop developed extensive lists of ideas which were shared with the Extension faculty from the region for programming and support.

The Cape Girardeau workshop included attendees from Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee and they will be looking at holding a regional multi-state conference in 2014 or 2015 focused on local foods.

A similar idea surfaced at the Macon workshop and it was decided to present the idea to the Tri-State Summit (an existing multi-state regional groups that includes 35 counties in NW Missouri, SE Iowa and Western Illinois) about co-sponsoring a workshop.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

Outcomes to date:

• Survey of the needs of current and potential food producers

• First set of guide sheets are out for peer review:

  • “Regulatory Channels for Food Entrepreneurs”

  • “Understanding Your Opportunities as a Food Entrepreneur”

• Two regional workshops held (79 attendees with 21 Extension educators)

• The six-month follow-up survey to determine impact and use of information provided has been designed. Distribution will begin in May, 2014. This same survey instrument will be used for the 12 and 24 month follow-up survey.

• Additional regional workshops will be held in 2014:

  • Lebanon, Missouri April 4^th

  • Northwest Missouri – TBD

  • St. Louis region – TBD

• As a co-sponsor for the workshops, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis provided approximate $2,000 in financial support (covered the meals, meeting room rental and helped with registration and marketing).  Unfortunately, a specific amount isn’t available as the person that was working with us has left the Bank and remaining staff can’t provide the figure. 

• As a result of the Macon workshop, Truman State University and the Kirksville (MO) Regional Economic Development office have contact a member of the team about assistance in development and coordination of a more in-depth educational program to assist food vendors (farmers market and food trucks) in understanding the opportunities that could come from using a shared-use facility for processing and retail preparation.

Collaborators: