This study examines the role that food consumer cooperatives play in the local food networks. Data are collected from three case studies with leading food cooperatives and a national survey of the general managers of food cooperatives. We identify the emerging business practices in local...

This study examines the role that food consumer cooperatives play in the local food networks. Data are collected from three case studies with leading food cooperatives and a national survey of the general managers of food cooperatives. We identify the emerging business practices in local...

The primary purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that influence earned income of organic farmers explicitly incorporating farmer decisions to engage in local selling. The stochastic frontier model identifies role model producers who are the most technically efficient in achieving the...

Interest is growing in the relocalization of staple crops, including wheat, in western Washington (WWA), a nontraditional wheat-growing area. Commercial bakers are potentially important food chain intermediaries in the case of relocalized wheat production. We conducted a mail survey of...

Given the geography and agroclimatic conditions of the Southeast, coupled with continued population expansion from in-migration, local foods markets may be a promising niche market for some farms in the region. The Southeast has more small farms than any other U.S. region. Using farm-level data,...

The overall purpose of this study is to conduct exploratory research on the market potential for local organic sales outlets for small-to-medium scale farmers in the South Atlantic Sub-region of the U.S. The objectives are as follow: (1) identification of the leading organic produce in each...

The contemporary US food systemis characterized by both an unprecedentedconcentration of corporate control as well as afragmentation of sourcing and marketingprocesses, introducing both new constraints andnew opportunities for more localized foodsystems. The purpose of our study is to...

The study of alternatives to conventional industrial agricultural production has intensified in recent years. While many types of alternative production systems, and the motivations of individuals to participate in them, have been studied, there are significant gaps in the literature. One such...

Consumer interest in locally produced foods has been increasing and many grocery retailers and other businesses have been involved in marketing local foods to interested consumers. We study the business strategies that food consumer cooperatives in the U.S. use to promote local foods to their...