Field Notes: The role of Farmers Markets and CSA’s in a Wholesale Marketplace.
FARMWISE Indiana specializes in working in the “intermediated market channel” space. In other words, we work to move food from farm to wholesale buyer. According to the Ag Census, from 2017 to 2022, intermediated market channel sales in Indiana jumped 280% from $80 million per year to $305 million.
Buyers at institutions like schools and universities are increasingly interested in purchasing from Indiana farms to serve students, hospital patients, the elderly and others. But what is motivating them to do this? In Indiana, we do not have fiscal incentives nor do we have a purchasing policy that requires minimum purchasing from Indiana farms.
What Motivates Institutional Buyers?
We were curious - sourcing locally has not been easy and even with the support from FARMWISE Indiana Value Chain Professionals, there are many, many details that need to be ironed out to ensure locally grown and raised foods can reach the institutional kitchen.
So we asked the buyers: what motivates you to purchase food from farmers?
One of the standout results from our research: buyers who grew up with locally grown food in the home, or who buy local food for their home kitchen will spend 8% more of their professional food budget on locally grown foods.
This is a numerically significant finding, but also significant, in that it demonstrates the essential role that farmers markets and CSA sales shape buyer habits. When the food service directors at schools, chefs in restaurants, retail proprietors, and corporate cafeteria chefs purchase locally grown food for their families, they spend a significantly larger portion of their budget on local food.
8% may not seem like a lot. However, the average local food purchase by institutions averages around 13% of their food budget. Adding 8% is significant.
So, if you are a food buyer - a chef, food service director, restauranteur, retailer - find a CSA or farm near you, buy a share of the harvest and cook with all the good food they provide. Attend the farmers market and challenge yourself to buy the things that are readily available in Indiana but not normally seen in an institutional kitchen. The more local food comes into our home kitchens, the more local food gets purchased by the institutional kitchen.
Jodee Smith
FARMWISE Indiana
Executive Director
