Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Completed Competitive Grant

Economic viability of local food marketing for Iowa restaurants, growers/producers

Project ID: 2005-M17

Abstract

The study considers what economic costs and benefits, and non-economic factors would influence restaurants and producers/growers to purchase/sell locally grown/produced foods.

Key Question: What are the types of costs and benefits involved for small and independent Iowa farms and restaurants to sell and purchase, respectively, locally produced food?

Findings: For local independently owned restaurants, it was found that while production costs of processing local foods are not significantly different than processing nationally sourced foods, sourcing, receiving, and storage costs can potentially be higher for menu items that use locally sourced primary ingredients. Producer surveys showed that while there are no significant differences in production costs, transportation and marketing efforts, and therefore costs, could be different if growers chose to sell to local restaurants.

Lead investigator: Amit Sharma, Pennsylvania State University, et al

Year of grant completion: 2007

This competitive grant project was part of the Leopold Center's Marketing Initiative.

Topics: Community-based food systems, Market research and feasibility studies