Farmers, distributors and others who grow and sell food come together with land and water as well as the people in rural communities to make up a food system.
“A food system is the chain of activities connecting food production, processing, distribution, marketing, access, consumption, and waste management. It includes the diverse agriculture infrastructure that produces our food, the natural resource base and the people that live and work in the county” (Source: http://johnsonlinn-localfood.webs.com).
Food systems include all processes involved in keeping us fed: growing, harvesting, processing (or transforming or changing), packaging, transporting, marketing, consuming and disposing of food and food packages. Food systems also include the inputs needed and outputs generated at each step. The food system operates within and is influenced by social, political, economic and natural environments. Each step is also dependent on human resources that provide labor, research and education.
A community food system is a food system in which food production, processing, distribution and consumption are integrated to enhance the environmental, economic, social and nutritional health of a particular place. A community food system can refer to a relatively small area, such as a neighborhood, or progressively larger areas – towns, cities, counties, regions, or bioregions. The concept of community food systems is sometimes used interchangeably with “local” or “regional” food systems, but by including the word “community” there is an emphasis on strengthening existing (or developing new) relationships among all components of the food system.
Four aspects distinguish community food systems from the globalized food system that typifies the source of most food Americans eat: food security, proximity, self-reliance and sustainability.
- Food security is a key goal of community food systems. While food security traditionally focuses on individual and household food needs, community food security addresses food access within a community context, especially for low-income households. It has a simultaneous goal of developing local food systems.
- Proximity refers to the distance between various components of the food system. In community food systems such distances are generally shorter than those in the dominant or global food system. This proximity increases the likelihood that enduring relationships will form between different stakeholders in the food system – farmers, processors, retailers, restaurateurs, consumers, etc.
- Self-reliance refers to the degree to which a community meets its own food needs. While the aim of community food systems is not total self-sufficiency (where all food is produced, processed, marketed and consumed within a defined boundary), increasing the degree of self-reliance for food, to be determined by a community partnership, is an important aspect of a community food system.
- Sustainability refers to following agricultural and food system practices that do not compromise the ability of future generations to meet their food needs. Sustainability includes land and environmental protection, profitability, ethical treatment of food system workers, and community development.
(Source: Cornell University)
Why is it important to support our local Virginia state food system?
Buying local food strengthens Virginia’s regional economy …
- Purchasing food that was grown and harvested locally keeps your money circulating within your community, keeping wealth in your region
- Buying local food supports family farmers in your community, some of whom have farmed the land for generations
- Supporting local farms can help to create jobs for your region
- A strong local economy insulates your region from national and global recessions
- Local farmers markets and CSA farms provide places for community members to meet, socialize, and discuss issues
- By helping family farms financially, you sustain your family and community with delicioius, healthy local foods!
- Buying local lets you connect with your food producer concerning the safety and nutrition of your foods…
- Locally-grown foods can be high in nutrients, often reaching you within 24 hours of harvest, while produce shipped from out of state may be up to a week old and has often suffered from severe nutrient loss
- When you buy locally, we can ask whether the farmers use safe farming practices, what they spray on their crops, what they feed to their animals and we can develop a relationship with our farmers
- Buying local preserves the natural environment …
- By supporting local Virginia agriculture, you protect your Virginia’s farmland from urban sprawl and development and protects natural ecosystems, and biodiversity
- Buying local food helps to reduce dependence on foreign oil needed to ship food thousands of miles, thus cutting back on greenhouse gas emissions.