Progress 02/01/17 to 01/31/20
Outputs
Target Audience:Between April 2019 and December 2020, the Exploring Innovations In Distributional Modularity To Increase Market Access & Reduce Environmental Impacts Of Regional Food Supply Chains Project served the following audiences: -Local and state government agencies: City of Madison Department of Planning, Community & Economic Development, City of Madison Food Policy Council, Dane County Food Council, WI Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection -Regional food processors, distributors, retailers, buyers, and investors: Wisconsin Food Hub Co-op, Willy Street Co-op, EPIC Systems, CivAmi -Economic development entities: Madison Region Economic Partnership, Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation -Academic audiences: Colleagues in the multi-state USDA research initiative NC1198: Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts Changes/Problems:I made several changes to my project in response to unforeseen opportunities and challenges. First, the course in which I was going to test the curriculum was discontinued. Instead, I adapted the curriculum to align with a new undergraduate certificate in food systems and have shared it with the faculty member who oversees the new certificate program. The curriculum will also be available on the UW-CIAS website. Another change to the project was to leverage the research findings to serve in an advisory capacity on a proposed food terminal project in Madison/Dane County. At the outset of the post-doctoral fellowship, it was my hope that my applied research would inform food systems policy, planning, and development, but I had not anticipated that my initial findings would be as well received as they were by the Mayor of Madison and the City's Common Council. While serving in an advisory capacity to the City and other regional partners was not part of my original project design, it has meant that Madison, Wisconsin may be one of the first places to put some of my findings to practice. Months after the official completion of the post-doc fellowship, the project lives on through a close collaboration of university, local and national experts who are working with funders to raise the capital necessary to complete a model terminal market that embodies the core functions uncovered in my research. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This NIFA Post-doctoral Fellowship helped me secure a position as a food systems scientist at the University of Wisconsin Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Research findings have primarily been communicated to communities of interest through public and conference presentations, meetings, media coverage, and through advisory roles on local government committees. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Objective 1: Identify best practices in sustainable regional food distribution- In Phase 1 of the grant (March 2017-October 2018), I completed a literature review and field research, including site visits and interviews at five terminal markets, two food hubs and a private food processing and cross-docking facility: Hunts Point Terminal Market, Bronx, NY Ontario Terminal Market, Metro Toronto, ON Atlanta State Farmers' Market, Atlanta, GA Central New York Regional Market, Syracuse, NY SF Market, San Francisco, CA Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative, Waupaca, WI Green Market Co., Bronx, NY Oscar Mayer Processing, storage and docking facility, Madison, WI Through this research, I identified the relative strengths of two distinct food aggregation and distribution models, i.e. food hubs and wholesale terminal. As last-mile distribution was under-represented in my interviews with market managers, tenants, and food hub operators, I identified several best practices in last-mile urban food freight through an international literature review. Objective 2: Uncover barriers and opportunities to promoting these practice-based ideals in specific food systems contexts in order to guide place-based adaptation and innovation- To meet Objective 2, in addition to soliciting input from academic and practitioner colleagues at various professional conferences and meetings, I coordinated a Madison Area Food Distributor/Buyer Meeting that attracted participants from across the southern half of Wisconsin to (1) convene a multi-stakeholder group of regional wholesale buyers, distributors, suppliers, processors, local government planning and economic development staff, and allied professionals, (2) share preliminary research findings, and (3) facilitate a discussion about how to enhance regional food aggregation and distribution by adapting flexible models, such as food hubs and wholesale market infrastructure, to the Circle City region (e.g. the region spanning from the Twin Cities southeast across Wisconsin to metro Chicago). Following are key findings from the meeting: There is strong multi-stakeholder interest in developing collaborative food aggregation/distribution infrastructure in greater Madison There is a need for a "backbone" organization to serve one or both of the following functions: (1) Short to mid-term: lead subsequent shared infrastructure planning efforts (2) Mid to long-term: manage operations Securing a lease for shared aggregation/distribution facility will require commitment by one or more bankable master lessees/anchor tenants A commitment from investors will likely require: (1) Aggregated demand across Madison-area wholesale food buyers (institutions, retailers, restaurants)-initial strategies could be sector-specific (2) Commitment to participate from regional businesses (3) A working pro forma based on (a) Storage & transport costs, and (b) Purchasing data from multiple Madison buyers & distributors The findings from the meeting led to a $126,000 investment by the City of Madison in a feasibility study for a regional food terminal and cross-dock designed to reduce GHG emissions, improve transport efficiencies, lower transport costs, enhance access to markets for regional producers, and improve access to affordable food products by small and independent groceries and low-income households. The resulting feasibility study was completed in February 2020 and has, in turn, spurred interest from private investors as a strategy for enhancing regional food system resilience over the long-term while addressing immediate issues resulting from supply chain disruptions due to the Covid-19 epidemic. Objective 3: Highlight the unique issues associated with mid-volume regional food supply chains by developing a unit of a graduate-level urban and regional planning course- I translated my research literature review into a curriculum for a course adaptable to higher level undergraduate students as well as graduate students with assistance from a graduate student hourly employee. Objective 4: Test the curriculum by teaching the unit as part of a graduate-level food systems planning course at University of Wisconsin-Madison- It was not possible to test the curriculum during the fellowship because the course was cancelled, however, the curriculum will be available on the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems website and shared with faculty affiliated with the new multidisciplinary food systems certificate program. Objective 5: Disseminate findings through a practitioner-oriented research brief, scholarly articles, and a regional supply chain stakeholder meeting- Over the course of the project, I disseminated research findings to audiences ranging from national trade associations to regional planners to food distributors to partners at state and federal agencies through local, regional, and national meetings, presentations, media coverage, publications, and network development. Following are specific examples of audiences reached: Federal agencies & national trade association audiences: USDA AMS & Rural Development, FDA, DOT United Fresh, National Association of Produce Market Managers Local and national food processors, distributors, retailers, and buyers: Organic Valley, FEED Kitchens, Wisconsin Food Hub Co-op, Willy Street Co-op, Coosemans World Wide, EPIC Systems Local Government audiences: Private meeting with Mayor Soglin, the Madison Food Policy Director, and representatives of the Madison Economic Development Division and Mayor's Office March 2018 Madison Food Policy Council, August 1, 2018 Madison Common Council Meeting, August 7, 2018 Nonprofits and emergency food providers Wisconsin Health and Hunger Summit, March 25-26, 2019 Academic & audiences: NC1198 Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts Meeting October 9-11, 2018: Minneapolis, MN Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Society Conference, June 13-16, Madison, WI NC1198 Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts Meeting October 14-16, 2019: Minneapolis, MN Objective 6: Cultivate greater expertise in applied qualitative research, publishing, curriculum development, and teaching- I fulfilled Objective 6 through the following activities and deliverables, and through Objectives 1-5: Developed experience in applied, qualitative research project design, project and budget management, reporting, and implementation beginning with the development of the IRB protocol and continuing with data collection, analysis, and dissemination. Presented to academic and practitioner audiences as well as to policy makers. Developed material adaptable for a 300-600 level course. Mentored graduate student. Wrote a research brief and book chapter article, additional article writing is underway: Day Farnsworth, L., Delwiche, A., & McKinney, C. (2019). The Good Food Purchasing Program: A Policy Tool for Promoting Supply Chain Transparency and Food System Change. In Institutions as Conscious Food Consumers (pp. 103-126). Academic Press. Day-Farnsworth, L. Forthcoming. "Wholesale Terminal Markets as Community and Regional Food Systems Assets." University of Wisconsin - Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Day-Farnsworth, L. Forthcoming. Wholesale Terminal Markets as Community and Regional Food Systems Assets. University of Wisconsin Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems.
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Progress 02/01/18 to 01/31/19
Outputs
Target Audience:Between April 2018 and March 2019, the Exploring Innovations In Distributional Modularity To Increase Market Access & Reduce Environmental Impacts Of Regional Food Supply Chains Project served the following target audiences by disseminating research findings: • Local and state government agencies: City of Madison Mayor's Office, City of Madison Department of Planning, Community & Economic Development, City of Madison Common Council, City of Madison Food Policy Council, Dane County Food Council, WI Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (WI DATCP) • Nonprofits, Community-based organizations: REAP Food Group, Second Harvest, attendees at 2019 Wisconsin Health and Hunger Summit • Regional food processors, distributors, retailers, and buyers: Wisconsin Food Hub Co-op, Willy Street Co-op, EPIC Systems • Economic development entities: Madison Region Economic Partnership • Academic audiences: Colleagues in the multi-state USDA research initiative NC1198: Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts; attendees of the national Agriculture, Food and Human Values Conference Changes/Problems:I have made several changes to my project in response to unforeseen opportunities and challenges. First, I did not anticipate that local government and partners would be as eager to act on my preliminary research findings as they were. As a result of local interest, by the second year of the project I was filling a more consultative role in research-to-policy translation and implementation guidance than I had anticipated. This was a very welcome opportunity, but it led to a more applied and participatory action research orientation than I had initially envisioned. Secondly, the original proposal envisioned a systems mapping of upper Midwest regional supply chains and their associated logistics. The proprietary nature of this information made prospective research partners reluctant to participate in an academically-driven systems mapping process. However, following the February 2018 Madison Area Food Distributor/Buyer Meeting that I organized, a group of multi-stakeholder regional partners coalesced around a regional freight efficiencies project idea to address cost and fuel inefficiencies associated with regional and last-mile food distribution through a proof-of-concept supply chain development project. In short, while businesses such as a regional food hub, a cooperative grocery retailer, and a corporate cafeteria were reluctant to share data in the service of research alone, they were willing to share proprietary information to collectively solve a concrete problem, e.g. high transportation costs. With this in mind, I shifted my approach and worked with these organizations to develop a USDA Local Food Promotion Program implementation proposal with an evaluation research component overseen by the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems. The proposal was successful, and the project was initiated in the fall of 2018. Due to the fact that the project stimulated traction in policy and implementation, I opted to focus on convening and supporting these efforts instead of organizing a formal stand-alone end-of-project meeting as the original proposal stated. Finally, for a second year in a row, enrollment in the graduate-level Urban and Regional Planning Food Systems and Markets course was not high enough to offer the course. While I have continued to develop a unit on distribution and supply chain issues with an emphasis on Agriculture of the Middle, this deliverable has become a less prominent component of the project due to both low course enrollment and unexpectedly high interest from local partners in implementing policy and supply chain development related to project findings, as discussed above. I am now exploring the possibility of incorporating the curriculum into a graduate-level Agroecology course during the 2019-2020 school year. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Since March 2018, I attended three professional development trainings: (1) April 6, 2018, I attended an all-day conference on Science and the American Experiment hosted the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters. The conference highlighted ways elected officials, civil servants, scientists, and journalists have shaped and navigated public discourse on scientific topics with significant ramifications for public policy and well-being, such as climate change. The conference illustrated some effective strategies for translating research to policy and representing evidenced-based observations in the media in an era when facts and unsubstantiated claims are regularly conflated and confused. (2) October 19-20, 2018, I attended a training hosted by the Central New York Regional Market Authority and the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets conference on the implications of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) for wholesale and retail produce markets. Presenters included representatives from the USDA AMS and the State of New York, as well as regional market managers and growers. The training clarified how FSMA will be operationalized and how liability will be determined at processing and marketing facilities where multiple growers and processors operate. (3) March 1, 2019, I attended an Interacting with the Media training for early career scientists co-sponsored by the Morgridge Institute for Research and UW University Communications. The half-day training highlighted specific communications tactics and resources scientists can employ when engaging with local and national media to help engender public understanding of scientific research and potentially increase citations and impact, among other benefits. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Research findings and related initiatives have primarily been communicated to communities of interest through public and conference presentations, meetings, and media coverage. Following are several examples of newspapers articles that have featured my postdoctoral research and related projects: Becker, A. (2018, August 13) Madison funds study of wholesale market targeting small, local food producers. Capital Times, Retrieved from https://madison.com/ct/news/local/govt-and-politics/madison-funds-study-of-wholesale-market-targeting-small-local-food/article_48f68b34-f730-5661-b0bc-a01b5f0c61c0.html Wroge, L. (2018, December 28). Former Oscar Mayer plant seen as possible location for regional food terminal facility. Wisconsin State Journal, Retrieved from: https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/former-oscar-mayer-plant-seen-as-possible-location-for-regional/article_b95c7dd2-4638-536a-ac52-3d5332e120ce.html Day Farnsworth, L. (2019, January 6). Bright Ideas 2019: Build infrastructure that helps everyone access local food. Capital Times, Retrieved from: https://madison.com/ct/news/local/city-life/bright-ideas-build-infrastructure-that-helps-everyone-access-local-food/article_4cfa16cb-ca66-55a6-9f7a-78da597a0445.htmla What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?In March 2019, I began a new position as a food systems scientist at the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems where my post-doc research was based. In February 2019, I received approval to convert the remainder of the fellowship funds to a standard grant to complete in my new capacity as food systems scientist by January 2020. At this point, most of the project deliverables are complete. I will devote the remaining award period to finish working on publications and finalize the curriculum development and dissemination (Objectives 4 and 5).
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Objective 1: Identify best practices in sustainable regional food distribution-100% complete • Completed with a literature review and field research, including site visits and interviews at five terminal markets, two food hubs and a private food processing and cross-docking facility. The markets were: Hunts Point Terminal Market, Bronx, NY Ontario Terminal Market, Metro Toronto, ON Atlanta State Farmers' Market, Atlanta, GA Central New York Regional Market, Syracuse, NY SF Market, San Francisco, CA Hubs: Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative, Waupaca, WI Green Market Co., Bronx, NY Center: Oscar Mayer Processing, storage and docking facility, Madison, WI Objective 2: Uncover barriers and opportunities to promoting these practice-based ideals in specific food systems contexts in order to guide place-based adaptation and innovation-100% complete • Hosted local and national multi-stakeholder meetings to disseminate preliminary findings, promote dialogue, and collect input. • Facilitated local and regional collaboration and strategic network development through (a) multi-stakeholder meetings (b) the development of the USDA Local Food Promotion Program Freight Efficiencies Implementation Project in conjunction with the Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative, and (c) local policy development and financing to support a feasibility study for a southern Wisconsin regional food terminal and cross-docking facility. Objective 3: Highlight the unique issues associated with mid-volume regional food supply chains by developing a unit of a graduate-level urban and regional planning course-100% complete • Translated literature review into a unit on "Distribution of the Middle" for a graduate level syllabus. Objective 4-Test the curriculum by teaching the unit as part of a graduate-level food systems planning course at University of Wisconsin-Madison-0% complete. This objective will be worked on in the next reporting period. Objective 5: Disseminate findings through a practitioner-oriented research brief, scholarly articles, and a regional supply chain stakeholder meeting-85% complete • Disseminated research findings through meetings and a research brief, scholarly articles in progress. Private meeting with Mayor Soglin, the Madison Food Policy Director, and representatives of the Madison Economic Development Division and Mayor's Office Madison Food Policy Council, August 1, 2018 - audience: Madison food policy council members, general public Madison Common Council Meeting, August 7, 2018 - audience: Madison Aldermen NC1198 Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts Meeting October 9-11, 2018: Minneapolis, MN - audience: academics Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Society Conference, June 13-16, Madison, WI - audience academics The other audiences have been reached through the development of the Freight Efficiencies Project and the Food Terminal Cross-Dock Feasibility Study (and associated resolutions, planning and implementation activities, and data collection)--both of these efforts were results of meetings and research that were part of my post-doc project. Objective 6: Cultivate greater expertise in applied qualitative research, publishing, curriculum development, and teaching-85% complete • Served as Project Manager, managing budget, reporting, and IRB Protocol development and oversight • Developed research design and conducted data collection and analysis • Presented to academic and practitioner audiences as well as to policy makers • Wrote research brief and initiated journal article writing • Developed material for a graduate level course • Mentored graduate student
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2018
Citation:
Becker, A. (2018, August 13). Madison funds study of wholesale market targeting small, local food producers. Capital Times, Retrieved from https://madison.com/ct/news/local/govt-and-politics/madison-funds-study-of-wholesale-market-targeting-small-local-food/article_48f68b34-f730-5661-b0bc-a01b5f0c61c0.html
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2018
Citation:
Wroge, L. (2018, December 28). Former Oscar Mayer plant seen as possible location for regional food terminal facility. Wisconsin State Journal, Retrieved from: https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/former-oscar-mayer-plant-seen-as-possible-location-for-regional/article_b95c7dd2-4638-536a-ac52-3d5332e120ce.html
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Day Farnsworth, L. (2019, January 6). Bright Ideas 2019: Build infrastructure that helps everyone access local food. Capital Times, Retrieved from: https://madison.com/ct/news/local/city-life/bright-ideas-build-infrastructure-that-helps-everyone-access-local-food/article_4cfa16cb-ca66-55a6-9f7a-78da597a0445.htmla
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Progress 02/01/17 to 01/31/18
Outputs
Target Audience:Between March 2017 and March 2018, the Exploring Innovations In Distributional Modularity To Increase Market Access & Reduce Environmental Impacts Of Regional Food Supply Chains Project served the following target audiences in two primary ways (1) by disseminating preliminary research findings based on site visits, interviews, and a review of the relevant literatures, and (2) by convening multi-stakeholder meetings to identify opportunities and barriers to regional food distribution and infrastructure development: • Trade associations: United Fresh, National Association of Produce Market Managers • Federal and local government agencies: USDA AMS & Rural Development, FDA, DOT, City of Madison Mayor's Office, City of Madison Department of Planning, Community & Economic Development • Colleges, universities, and cooperative extension: Madison Area Technical College Culinary Program, University of Wisconsin Hospital Food Services Division, Dane County Extension • Community-based organizations: FairShare CSA Coalition, REAP Food Group • Local and national food processors, distributors, retailers, and buyers: Organic Valley, FEED Kitchens, Wisconsin Food Hub Co-op, Willy Street Co-op, Coosemans World Wide, EPIC Systems • Economic development entities: Madison Region Economic Partnership, Oscar Mayer Strategic Assessment Committee • Academic audiences: Colleagues in the multi-state USDA research initiative NC1198: Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts Changes/Problems: I have made several changes to the project in response to unforeseen opportunities and challenges encountered in the research process. First, the grant proposal envisioned a sequential approach to the case study research and the applied research phase, which was to focus on adapting national best practices to the regional level. At the regional level, the timing of the 2018 Madison Comprehensive Planning process and the closing of the 1,200+ employee Madison-based, Oscar Mayer headquarters and food processing plant presented several concrete opportunities for the Project to inform regional food infrastructure planning and development in the first year of the project. Similarly, an emergent collaboration with the National Association of Produce Market Managers presented an opportunity to help shape the agenda for a national multi-agency and multi-stakeholder meeting on wholesale produce infrastructure and present to a national audience at USDA headquarters in Washington D.C. Together, these opportunities led me to begin disseminating preliminary findings to practitioner audiences prior to the completion of data collection, analysis, and a set of national case studies. It also resulted in the acceleration of the regional, applied phase of the project. Additionally, preliminary data from the applied research phase suggests that systems mapping (as proposed in Phase 3 of the project) may not be viable within the timeframe and scope of this project alone due to the proprietary nature of food supply chains and their associated logistics. That said, I have begun working with academic and practitioner partners to develop relationships and subsequent research, planning, and implementation proposals that can facilitate regional food flow analysis from either existing data sets, such as the Commodity Flow Survey (Census Bureau and Bureau of Transportation Statistics), which includes only a few categories of food commodities (e.g., cereal grains, meat and fish, prepared foods, and other agricultural products) and/or from local planning and pilot projects predicated on local private partners' commitment to sharing sales, volume, purchasing, and transport data. The Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative has emerged as an early partner in this work and has already shared such data, but regional food systems mapping and analysis based on existing food flow patterns will require similar data from other regional partners. Finally, Spring 2018 enrollment in the graduate-level Planning and Landscape Architecture course Food Systems and Markets was not high enough to justify offering the course this semester. I am in conversation with my primary and collaborating mentors to develop a contingency plan in case course enrollment numbers are low again the next term that it is offered. Options include teaching the unit as part of another course offered through a department such as Community and Environmental Sociology, Environmental Studies, or Agroecology. I have already collected a number of reading materials and assignment ideas for a unit on Agriculture of the Middle with an emphasis on food distribution issues, and I plan to complete the curriculum over the summer of 2018. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?As for training and professional development, in 2017, I attended three out of state professional development trainings/conferences: (1) May 7-8, 2017, I attended a Postdoctoral Mentor Training in Chicago hosted by the National Research Mentoring Network, a nationwide consortium of biomedical professionals and institutions collaborating to provide all trainees across the biomedical, behavioral, clinical and social sciences with evidence-based mentorship and professional development programming. The training highlighted a number of resources and techniques to promote an inclusive lab environment, mutually beneficial professional mentoring relationships, effective time management, and healthy work-life balance strategies to foster success in careers in research and academia. (2) June 8-9, 2017, I attended the Systems Thinking & Food Systems Teaching Community of Practice (CoP) Symposium at Columbia University. The CoP focuses on undergraduate and graduate curricula and teaching methods that integrate food systems and systems thinking. The symposium presented an opportunity to network with faculty from across the US and Canada who are engaged in research and teaching at this unique intersection of topics and provided a number of resources and ideas for curriculum development and teaching approaches that help students engage systems thinking as they grapple with the inherently systemic nature of issues such as food security, food flow, and public health and nutrition. (3) December 14-15, 2017, I attended the Domestic Fair Trade Conference in Atlanta, Georgia to learn about fair labor practices in local and regional food supply chains as well as certification-based and other approaches to building equity into regional food systems development for workers as well as eaters. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Refer to the "Target Audience" and "Other Products" sections of this report for a list of the national and regional events at which preliminary findings were disseminated and the wide range of audiences they reached. To date, research dissemination has focused largely on practitioner audiences, however, I also attended the October 2017 national meeting of the multi-state USDA research initiative NC1198 Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts, where I shared the Project with academics from peer institutions, including UC Davis, WSU, University of Vermont, University of Minnesota and others. Disseminating results to academic audiences will be a primary focus of Year 2 of the Project. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?In Year 2 of the project, I plan to initiate work on Objectives 3 and 4, and expand my work on Objectives 5 and 6 as detailed in the bullet points below: Objective 3: Highlight the unique issues associated with mid-volume regional food supply chains by developing content for a unit of a graduate-level urban and regional planning course • With input from collaborating mentor, Alfonso Morales, I will develop an Agriculture of the Middle course unit with an emphasis on regional food distribution and supply chain development. The syllabus and curriculum will draw on (1) Resources from and conversations with colleagues in the multi-state USDA research Initiative NC1198: Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, Environmental and Social Impacts, (2) Literature reviews on urban consolidation centers, food hubs, and wholesale produce market history and infrastructure, (3) Primary graduate and post-doctoral research on mid to high volume regional food distribution. Objective 4: Test the curriculum by teaching the unit as part of a graduate-level food systems planning course at University of Wisconsin - Madison • Arrange with collaborating mentor, Alfonso Morales, to teach a unit devoted to Agriculture of the Middle with an emphasis on regional food distribution and supply chain development for the Fall 2018 or Spring 2019 Food Systems & Markets course at the UW-Madison Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture. Objective 5: Disseminate findings through a practitioner-oriented research brief, scholarly articles, and a regional supply chain stakeholder meeting • In Year 2 of the grant, I will focus more heavily on dissemination of research findings to academic audiences. For example, I have organized a panel titled "Toward a Multifunctional Model of Food Distribution" for the June 2018 Agriculture and Human Values Society conference, where I will present my post-doctoral research findings in conjunction with co-presenters from the USDA AMS, the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems, and a practitioner and public intellectual from the Wisconsin Food Hub Co-op. • I will also continue collaboration with local and national colleagues and scholars to turn my research into at least three peer-reviewed publications and 3 practitioner-oriented research briefs. • I will also continue to submit papers to academic and practitioner conferences, including those hosted by the American Planning Association and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning. Objective 6: Cultivate greater expertise in applied qualitative research, publishing, curriculum development, and teaching • With much of the research phase of the project now complete, I will build on what I have accomplished in Year 1 by devoting the majority of my time in Year 2 to (1) manuscript writing (specifically, 3 peer-reviewed publications and practitioner-oriented briefs) and (2) curriculum development and teaching.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
As of March 2018, I have accomplished and/or made substantial progress in the following 4 project objectives: Objective 1: Identify best practices in sustainable regional food distribution • I identified the relative strengths of two food aggregation and distribution models, i.e. food hubs and wholesale terminal markets, through literature reviews, interviews, site visits, and meetings • As last-mile distribution was under-represented in my interviews with market managers, tenants, and food hub operators, I identified several best practices in last-mile urban food freight through an international literature review Objective 2: Uncover barriers and opportunities to promoting these practice-based ideals in specific food systems contexts in order to guide place-based adaptation and innovation As noted above, the Project hosted a Madison Area Food Distributor/Buyer Meeting to (1) convene a multi-stakeholder group of regional wholesale buyers, distributors, suppliers, processors, local government planning and economic development staff, and allied professionals, (2) share preliminary research findings, and (3) facilitate a discussion about how to enhance regional food aggregation and distribution by adapting flexible models, such as food hubs and wholesale market infrastructure, to the Circle City region (e.g. the region spanning from the Twin Cities southeast across Wisconsin to metro Chicago). Following are the central findings from the meeting; they are already be used to inform grant proposals for subsequent research, planning, and implementation activities: • There is strong multi-stakeholder interest in developing collaborative food aggregation/distribution infrastructure in greater Madison • There is a need for a "backbone" organization to serve one or both of the following functions: (1) Short to mid-term: lead subsequent shared infrastructure planning efforts (2) Mid to long-term: manage operations • Securing a lease for shared aggregation/distribution facility will require commitment by one or more bankable master lessees/anchor tenants • A commitment from investors will likely require: (1) Aggregated demand across Madison-area wholesale food buyers (institutions, retailers, restaurants)--initial strategies could be sector-specific (2) Commitment to participate from regional businesses (3) A working pro forma based on (a) Storage & transport costs, and (b) Purchasing data from multiple Madison buyers & distributors • Potential next steps include: (1) Incorporating wholesale food infrastructure into Madison Planning & Economic Development priorities and budget allocations (2) Collaboration between public, private, and/or nonprofit partners to secure resources for (a) leadership, coordination and planning of multi-organizational activities, and/or (b) aggregation and distribution pilot projects Objective 5: Disseminate findings through a practitioner-oriented research brief, scholarly articles, and a regional supply chain stakeholder meeting • I initiated preliminary dissemination of research findings to communities of interest ranging from national trade associations to regional planners to food distributors through local, regional, and national meetings, beginning in January 2018. Objective 6: Cultivate greater expertise in applied qualitative research, publishing, curriculum development, and teaching • Phase 1 of the Project provided ample opportunity for professional development in applied, qualitative research project design, management, and implementation beginning with the development of the IRB protocol and continuing with data collection, analysis, and dissemination. • I am also collaborating with a colleague from the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems and Laura Lengnick, author of Resilient Agriculture: Cultivating Food Systems for a Changing Climate (New Society Publishers) to develop a chapter or article on innovations in metropolitan food chains, which will draw on my post-doc research.
Publications
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