About the
calculator
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Did you know that ...? Facts about
Iowa produce
The Iowa Produce Market Potential Calculator is part of a
new generation of market tools being
developed with support and technical assistance by the
Leopold Center. These marketing aids have a variety of uses,
and build upon the knowledge we’ve gained over the past
eight years of supporting local and regional food system
projects. Here are a few ways that this unique tool can be
used.
A market discovery tool for producers
An Iowa farmer interested in local and regional fresh
produce markets can use the Iowa Produce Market Potential
Calculator to explore new or expand existing markets. With
information from the Calculator, a farmer can see the
relative demand for 37 different fresh produce items, either
for particular counties or the entire state.
For example, it’s easy to use the calculator to see that
Iowa farmers supply only 1 percent of the state’s
consumption of fresh broccoli. Armed with this information,
a farmer can adjust yield, acreage or market share to get
information that he or she needs to develop a marketing
plan.
A tool for partners across the fresh produce value chain
Many tools developed by researchers and educators are
designed for only one sector of the food value chain.
However, the Iowa Produce Market Potential Calculator can be
beneficial for producers, processors, distributors and
retailer partners across the chain. Its output can help
these partners with production, supply management,
transportation/logistics and market potential questions.
Specific examples include estimations of the potential farm
revenue for a specific crop, the number of acres needed to
supply demand, the number and size of trucks needed for
transport to meet demand, and the amount of cubic feet of
warehouse space. Given the opportunity, the calculator also
could be used by nongovernmental organizations and other
public sector partners to provide more information across
local and regional produce value chains.
As an economic development tool for local/regional food
groups
What we’ve learned from Leopold Center food system projects
is that in order for local and regional food enterprises to
succeed, they need strategic support at the state and
community levels. Significant community and state-based
incentives and resources must be in place to attract
entrepreneurs and transitioning farmers to start and stay
with these food enterprises.
Although the general benefits of local and regional food
systems have been articulated by many, there is a lack of
information about how these enterprises can impact local and
regional economies.
Using the Iowa Produce Market Potential Calculator is one
approach that can help farmers and local groups, including
state food policy councils, more effectively make the case
for local and state investment in these enterprises.
As a tool to model economic impacts of local food systems
What would happen to Iowa’s economy if Iowans raised, rather
than imported, just 25 percent of the 37 different fruits
and vegetables that are consumed in Iowa each year?
Let’s assume that instead of marketing these fruits and
vegetables through existing grocery outlets, Iowa farmers
were able to offer these produce items for direct sale.
Under this scenario, Iowa grocery chains would lose some of
their retail margins since they would not sell the same
volume of fresh produce. And the number of farms engaged in
fruit and vegetable production would need to increase, as
would all of the labor necessary for the production. A
percentage of land currently used for conventional crops
(primarily corn and soybeans) would need to be planted in
fruit and vegetable crops.
ISU economist Dave Swenson worked with the Regional Food
Systems Working Group to consider the impact of this
hypothetical scenario on Iowa’s economy. By netting out the
changes outlined above, Swenson was able to get a good idea
of the potential contributions under this scenario.
Using supply and demand data from the Iowa Produce Market
Potential Calculator, in conjunction with a modified state
of Iowa input-output model maintained in the Department of
Economics at ISU, Swenson modeled the potential economic
impacts of these shifts in production and distribution. If
the 25 percent goal were achieved, he estimated that total
new sales in Iowa would increase by nearly $140 million, and
$52.4 million in additional labor income would be paid to
2,030 job holders.
While this scenario is purely hypothetical and created for
discussion purposes, it shows some of the dramatic impacts
that changes in our food production system could have at the
Iowa level. This is just one of many reasons that the Iowa
Produce Market Potential Calculator is a powerful resource
to add to our tool kit.
About
the calculator The Iowa Produce
Market Potential Calculator was developed by the Center for
Transportation Research and Education (CTRE) at Iowa State
University and the Leopold Center.
The calculator displays an Iowa map that shows both
statewide and county-by-county supply and demand for each of
the 37 fruit and vegetable crops that can be grown in Iowa.
Crops include tree fruits such as apples, pears and plums,
several types of berries, melons, garlic, and a variety of
vegetables such as asparagus, carrots, cabbage, green beans,
potatoes, pumpkins, squash, sweet corn and tomatoes.
Supply – where and how much of a certain crop is grown in
Iowa – is based on information from the U.S. Census of
Agriculture. Demand – or what Iowans eat – is based on
national per capita consumption data.
The calculator can show results in a variety of weight-based
units: pounds, bushels, even by one-ton, 10-ton or 20-ton
truck loads. It also figures potential farm revenues that
would accrue if the local markets were fully realized.
The tool has generated much interest and numerous requests
from people who want to duplicate the model in other states. |