Exploring Local Food System Development Strategies at the Neighborhood Level

In this blog post, I’ll take you on a tour of my community to highlight some people, places, and initiatives that are helping to strengthen the local food system while also building community connections.

Farmers Market

This year my community is celebrating 50 years of our local farmers market. What started as a small event with just a handful of vendors, is now a community staple attracting hundreds of residents every Saturday throughout the summer and fall.

Vendors sell foods grown and produced throughout the region including fruits, vegetables, meat, cheese, bread, mushrooms, plants and flowers, and other value-added products like dips, jams, and salsas. Local artisans also sell things like jewelry, garden art, and kitchen wears. Community nonprofits are also represented at the market with staff and volunteers helping make residents aware of their services and resources. The church that hosts the market in its parking lot has become well-known for their homemade doughnuts and fresh coffee, which they sell to raise funds for their community outreach work.

Near the doughnut tent, a group of local musicians meet weekly for a bluegrass jam session, providing entertainment for visitors. Throughout the market season, the city hosts various special events to celebrate the local food system in creative ways including a corn roast and a pie bake-off.

Why do farmers markets matter?

• Local food access – Shoppers gain access to locally grown and produced foods that are not typically found in large grocery chains.

• Food security and health – Farmers market produce often costs the same as or even less than produce from large grocery chains, making it easier for people to purchase high quality, healthy foods. All of the vendors at my market accept SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), WIC (Special SNAP for Women, Infants, and Children), and Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Assistance Program vouchers which support healthy diets for low-income residents. Additionally, the market participates in Illinois’ Link Up program which matches funds so that for every $1 spent with SNAP, the person receives $1 in additional benefits, essentially doubling their purchasing power at the farmer’s market.

• Outside of the farmers market, SNAP and WIC are not universally accepted. If a person doesn’t have easy access to a grocery store, they may be limited to using their benefits at small shops and corner stores with limited supplies and options of fruits and vegetables. The neighborhood farmers market creates new opportunities for those residents to choose from a wide variety of high quality, healthy foods that they might not find elsewhere in their community.

• Education and awareness – Farmers markets are family-friendly events that allow people of all ages to learn about where their food comes from and to meet the people who grow and produce it. It provides direct access to the local food system in a way that people don’t typically get to experience.

• Local economic development - Farmers markets provide an important stream of income for small farmers and food businesses. Many of these vendors live, shop, and pay taxes locally, which means that when people buy from them at the market, they are ensuring that more of that money remains in the local economy. Because market vendors accept food vouchers, they help to expand the customer base to SNAP, WIC, and senior market voucher holders who might otherwise spend their benefits at a big box store that rarely invests back into the local community. Furthermore, programs like Link Up Illinois which match SNAP spending, create double the economic impact through farmers market sales.

• Community building – The market is the place where friends, family, and neighbors meet. It’s accessible to people of all backgrounds and income levels and provides a space for people to show up and be in community even if they have no money to spend. It brings out musicians and community organizations. Events like the pie bake-off create connections between neighbors that might not happen otherwise. Customers build relationships with local farmers and business owners that strengthen their civic pride. It transforms what would otherwise be an empty church parking lot into a vibrant community space every single weekend. This weekly event continues to grow each year because it provides so much more to the community than just food.

Vegetable and Pollinator Gardens

Walking through my neighborhood, I realize that there is local food system infrastructure all around me in the form of gardens. I see several robust front yard gardens covered in raised beds that are filled with leafy greens, vines climbing trellises, and colorful vegetables peaking out from below the leaves. In the video below you’ll see all of this in my parents' garden.

My small apartment building doesn’t have much of a yard for gardening, but my neighbors and I make the most of our patio space by covering it with potted plants, including lettuces, berries, and herbs. Another neighbor has spent the summer transforming the space which used to be a driveway into a large vegetable garden. And just down the road, the Forest Park Community Garden continues to produce an abundance of food in its seventeenth g rowing season. The group rents garden plots to individuals and families but also reserves a large section for growing foods to be donated to the local food pantry. Volunteers help to maintain this section of the garden.

In addition to vegetable gardens, it is very common to see native plant gardens in my neighborhood. This is thanks to our local government’s efforts to encourage people to plant native plants in the parkways (the green space between the sidewalk and the street) near their homes. They have formalized this support in our local code of ordinances. They also provide planting lists and design templates as well as resources for where to find seeds and gardening tools.

Native plants have deep root systems that improve soil health, can withstand changing climate conditions, and retain storm water leading to reduced flooding. What makes them relevant to food systems is that they attract pollinators like bees, butterflies, birds, and bats which are needed to support reproduction among many food plants. According to the USDA, one out of every three bites of food includes an ingredient dependent on animal pollinators. So, even if your own garden is not producing food, your native plants are helping to support the food production of your neighbors.

Why do gardens matter?

• Versatility and accessibility – Whether it’s growing food in a pot on an apartment balcony, building raised beds in one’s yard, or working to grow food with neighbors in a shared community space, gardening can happen at many different scales. By adding infrastructure such as seating, shaded areas, raised beds with space underneath for wheelchairs and by sharing physical responsibilities among a group of people, gardening can also be accessible to people of all ages and abilities. It provides a way for anyone to get involved in developing their local food system.

• Health and food security – For people with low incomes who experience food insecurity, growing one’s own food or working in a community garden can help provide access to fresh fruits and vegetables – foods that can be difficult to purchase regularly at the grocery store due to costs. Additionally, working outside in a garden can contribute to other positive health impacts. The physical labor of gardening can be great exercise and the fresh air, proximity to nature, engagement with neighbors, and feelings of accomplishment all have a significant impact on mental health.

• Community building – Gardens bring people together. Whether that’s by encouraging people to walk around their neighborhood to appreciate their beauty, by starting conversations among neighbors or sharing produce with others, by creating opportunities for people to get outside and work together, or by building civic pride through stewardship and volunteering. When we turn empty space into a productive garden, it helps us think about our neighborhoods as places of opportunity, rather than deficits. They make us think about how our individual actions are connected to a larger system and help us get creative about what’s possible for our communities.

• Climate impact – Gardens provide a number of direct environmental benefits including improved soil health and storm water management, capture of carbon dioxide and release of clean oxygen, and homes and food for the pollinators that are critical to our ecosystems and food systems. Transforming open green space into gardens also reduces the need for lawn maintenance that often requires fossil-fueled machinery. Similarly, growing food locally reduces emissions caused by transporting commercially grown food to grocery stores. Even at the neighborhood scale, the environmental benefits are tangible.

Cooperative Grocery Store

When I walk into the Sugar Beet Food Co-op, I smell an amazing combination of earthy vegetables, freshly brewed coffee, and warm baked goods. One of the first things I see is a giant bulletin board with dozens of stickers and flyers representing local organizations and upcoming community events. Signage fills the store highlighting the cooperative’s mission and values. There is a group of gentlemen sipping coffee together in the cafe area. Another woman is reading a detailed description of the farm where the salad she is about to buy was grown.

Signs like this are included on nearly every item in the produce section. This doesn’t feel like a traditional chain grocery store. And that’s the point. Cooperatives are designed and developed intentionally to align with specific community values – in this case, supporting local farmers and businesses, addressing inequities in the food system, providing high quality employment, practicing environmental stewardship, and building an inclusive space for the community.

The other thing that distinguishes cooperatives is that they are owned and managed directly by the community, meaning the people in the neighborhood who shop at the store. Anyone can purchase an ownership share and gain access to benefits like discounts, opportunities to serve on the Board of Directors, voting rights, and patronage dividends that are paid back to owners in years that the store is profitable. In a corporate grocery setting, wealthy trustees and shareholders with little to no connection to the local communities where their stores are located control business decisions and reap nearly all of the profits. They make decisions based on what will generate the most profits, while the co-op makes decisions based on the needs and interests of its local member owners.

My research tells me that the Sugar Beet was founded in 2012 by a group of local neighbors who wanted a non-corporate grocery alternative that was better aligned with their values and would better support the local economy. They developed a board of directors and with continued planning and organizing, the store officially opened its doors in 2015. Eleven years later and the store remains a local staple, supported and sustained by its neighbors.

Why do co-ops matter?

• Local food marketplace – The co-op is committed to selling locally grown and produced foods. This is important for consumers who want to support their local food system and for farmers, who need new streams of revenue to sustain their businesses. Because grocery stores operate year-round, this gives farmers a more consistent market for their products and additional options for consumers outside of farmers market season.

• Food access – The Sugar Beet sits in the middle of my neighborhood, accessible on foot and by public transit. It sells high quality foods that are not always available in chain grocery stores and rarely available in corner and convenience stores. They accept SNAP and WIC and participate in the Link Match program, which allows SNAP users to gain up to $10 in additional benefits. Many times, independent grocery stores can be out of reach for low-income households, but the co-op works hard to bridge those gaps and make their products available to all.

• Education and awareness – Clear descriptions of how the co-op defines “local” helps people better understand their local and regional food system. It also reminds people that even though we live in an urban area, there is plenty of agriculture happening in our region. Photos and descriptions of the farmers whose products are featured in the store force people to think about the people who grow and harvest their food. It reminds them that there are real people and families in our communities who are responsible for sustaining our diets. This builds a stronger appreciation for and commitment to the local food system.

• Local economic development and wealth building – By buying and selling from local producers, employing local workers, and investing back into its worker owners, the co-op ensures that money spent in the store remains in the local economy. Additionally, making membership accessible to all creates a new form of community wealth building. The one-time $250 membership fee is reasonable for households with a wide range of income levels. And for those for whom $250 is a financial barrier, the co-op offers a subsidized membership of just $50 with all of the same benefits. Cooperative ownership can be an alternative that allows people to support their local community, while also building their own wealth. This equitable membership system ensures that everyone, not just the community’s wealthiest members, benefit from the store’s success. Stock market investing is not necessarily accessible to many people in our communities. Cooperatives help build a more just economy.

• Community building – In addition to being a physical space where people can gather and get to know their neighbors, the co-op also gives people the opportunity to shape their community in real ways. As an owner, you can use your vote to guide the direction of the business. You have the power to ensure that the community’s shared values are represented in the business’s practices and management. Furthermore, shared ownership is an incredible leadership skill that allows people to practice collaboration. Building these skills helps people work together effectively in ways that can transform their communities far beyond the walls of the co-op.

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I hope this post gives you some ideas for what to look for when you’re out exploring in your own community. I hope it also helps to demonstrate that food system development and community development go hand in hand. Every action we take to grow and support our local food system also helps our environment, our economy, our health, and builds stronger relationships with others.

Take a walk or a ride through your neighborhood and see what food system elements you can find. Also consider where there might be opportunities to try something new. In the next phase you'll have the opportunity to share more about your community and your hopes for your local food system. See you there!

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