Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Center presents Iowa Local Food and Farm Plan

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The Leopold Center has completed the Iowa Local Food and Farm Plan designed to boost the local food economy and increase opportunities for those who want to buy or sell Iowa-raised meat, poultry, eggs, dairy, fruit, vegetable and other crops in local and regional markets.

The 63-page report was submitted January 10 to the Iowa Legislature, which asked the Leopold Center to develop a plan for the state of Iowa. Details were unveiled at a January 20 event in West Des Moines featuring accolades from two state legislators and top-level representatives of the Iowa State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, Iowa Meat Processors Association, Hy-Vee and GROWN Locally, one of the state’s largest farmer networks. More than 150 people attended the event.

The Iowa Local Food and Farm Plan calls for creation of a state-level local food and farm program, education and training for producers and local food businesses, changes in state policy to benefit local food businesses, and data collection to track growth of local food sales. The plan recommends hiring a local food and farm state coordinator whose position and seed funds to implement other recommendations would be supported by a voluntary Local Food and Farm Program Fund.

“Iowa has the potential to grow the local food economy with strategic but modest investments, incentives, and better coordination of existing resources,” said Rich Pirog, Leopold Center associate director who led development of the plan.

More than 1,000 people from 95 of Iowa’s 99 counties contributed to development of the Iowa Local Food and Farm Plan. Information was gathered at workshops, 15 listening sessions throughout the state and two surveys. The draft recommendations were discussed with leaders of 21 state agencies, institutions and organizations. The plan outlines why each recommendation is important, who would implement it, where resources would come from, and the benefits.

Local food plans have been developed in at least a dozen states and regions including Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan, North Carolina and the City of New York.

Only two of the 34 proposals in the plan would require state appropriations: hiring a statewide coordinator (state support for one year) and assisting Iowa’s Farm-to-School program (two years).

Other recommendations include:

  • Creation of a Local Food and Farm Program Fund from the sale of collectible local food posters, bumper stickers, stamps and license plates,
  • Business development and financial assistance for farmers and local food businesses,
  • Food and meat processing education and training programs,
  • Food safety education, and a pilot cost-share program for food safety audits,
  • Business training programs that target beginning, minority or transitioning farmers,
  • Data collection to assess progress and track state agency and educational institution purchases of local foods, and
  • Pilot incentive programs for five K-12 school districts and five health care facilities that serve Iowa produce.

Only popcorn was missing

The latest advice from Iowa local food leaders? Just pretend you are in a theater…with local popcorn. Because according to Rich Pirog, Associate Director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, “This part of the movie isn’t over yet.”

He was persuading a room full of people to stay and hear about a new statewide plan ...The people gathered didn’t need much persuasion, as we were all ears, but all eyes had a bit of difficulty for lack of light. Just after Pirog enthusiastically listed some of the benefits of the plan including diversification of crops, expansion of job opportunities, circulation of money locally, creation of ancillary businesses, and opportunities to benefit rural communities the major question produced a reaction beyond cinematic expectation. “What is local food?” Pirog asked.

Then darkness. No more lights. No more beloved PowerPoint presentation. No more microphones.

No, the power didn’t go down on local food. The power in the Hy-Vee Conference Center may have shut down, but there is nothing shutting down about local foods. … We’ve rolled through some opening credits in the past decade, and are now looking for more lead roles. 

― Laura Kuennen, Iowa State University Extension Flavors of Northwest Iowa blog, January 24, 2011

Back to Leopold Letter Spring 2011