Local Foods: Playing Both Sides

Playing Both Sides

Interest in and demand for local food continues to grow throughout the United States. The USDA indicates that there were 4,385 farmers markets in the U.S. in 2006, up 40% since 1996, and the Robin Van En Center for Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Resources identified 1,140 CSAs in the U.S. as of January 2006. As the demand for local products increases, restaurants and food service establishments also seek more local ingredients to serve to their customers.

If you think back to your Introductory Economics class you'll recall that demand must be matched with sufficient supply. Uniting all components of the "food system," the Heartland Food Network (HFN) works to meet demands for local foods and bolster the supply by increasing the capacity for local farmers and producers to sell their foods.

HFN is a unique collaboration of chefs, restaurateurs, farmers and distributors whose mission is: to encourage and facilitate the increased consumption of local and seasonal foods as a way to build stronger communities, healthier lives and a cleaner environment.

Organized by HFN, Third Thursday is a monthly event celebrating local foods and local restaurants. Chefs at HFN member restaurants offer seasonal specials featuring local ingredients. Different monthly specials allow you to experience the flavors of the season and the creativity of the chefs.

With top-notch chefs preparing fabulous seasonal dishes, HFN's message about local foods is easy to communicate to the public. The superlative flavors of local foods prepared by talented chefs are hard to argue with. If you haven't experienced these local food masterpieces yet, we encourage you to do so! For example, at the 2007 Twin Cities Food and Wine Experience visitors were treated to a smoked trout salad served on a goat cheese profiterole from Executive Chef Rick Kimmes of the Oceanaire. This simple, delicious dish featured ingredients from three local producers: smoked trout from Star Prairie Farms in Wisconsin and Minnesota's Stickney Hill chevre and PastureLand butter. Executive Chef Paul Lynch of FireLake Grill offered a whole grain risotto that included local whole grains, PastureLand Butter and Amablu cheese. Executive Chef Ray Thering of the University of Minnesota's Bistro West served a wonderful dish of braised short ribs featuring 1000 Hills Cattle Company's grass-fed beef.

The relationship between 1000 Hills and the U of M is an example of how HFN helps connect chefs to local farmers and producers. HFN helped Chef Ray, a newcomer to local product sourcing, identify 1000 Hills Cattle Company as a great supplier of local grass-fed beef, and one who was willing and able to work through the University's distribution partner, Sysco MN.

"All the networking that goes on is phenomenal because you're able to reach every corner of the state," said Chef Ray.

With increasing demand for local ingredients, producers and farmers have new opportunities for marketing their products. HFN supports the supply side of this equation by helping producers connect to buyers. HFN maintains a list of experienced producers ready and able to sell to chefs and distributors. Additionally, at monthly roundtable meetings, member chefs often recommend local suppliers to one another. Forming these connections is an essential step in assuring that local farmers and producers can serve this growing demand.

Another crucial step in sustaining a reliable supply of local foods is helping farmers and producers work with food service accounts. While many farmers and producers want to sell to restaurants and distributors, the transition isn't always easy, and it takes special skills to move into this market place. HFN works to bridge this gap by providing training for farmers and producers interested in selling to food service. At this year's MN Grown Marketing Conference, HFN partnered with MN Grown, Food Alliance Midwest and Renewing the Countryside in two workshops. Workshop panels included a local food consultant, a farmer, a producer and a chef who discussed trends in local foods purchasing and personal experiences as buyers and sellers in the food service world. These kinds of workshops help build the necessary skills, information and relationships it takes to insure a balance of supply and demand for local food, and they help assure that it is a food system that chefs, farmers and distributors want to and can be a part of.

To locate participating Third Thursday restaurants, visit www.heartlandfoodnetwork.org or call the Third Thursday hotline at 651.645.6159, extension 111.