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Betsy donald
1. Betsy Donald, Queen‟s University
“The Creative Rural Economy: from theory to
practice”, June 14, 2011
Kingston, Ontario
2. What is creative food?
What are the trends in creative food?
Success stories
Lessons for Ontario‟s rural communities
3. Ten years ago, “creative food” described
elements of a newer food system
Creative food included specialty, local, organic,
ethnic, and fair-trade foods that had supply
networks distinct from mainstream ones
Creative food offered innovative solutions to
ecological, social and health concerns
Today we know much more about the
complexities of “creative food” chains
4. We know more about the contradictions and
ambiguities of systems like
Local and green (Born and Purcell, Marsden, Blay-Palmer )
Global and fair trade, organic and cosmopolitan systems
(Imbruce, Guthman and Morgan)
Regional food networks (Kneafsey, Donald et al.)
We know about the challenges within the food system
Labour practices (Slocum; Color of Food; Allen); gender (Coldwell);
class and hunger (Allen, Berg, Bedore); natural systems (Whatmore,
McClintock)
We have more sophisticated theoretical tools and
empirical cases
5. Westill don‟t know how various “creative
food” segments are fairing compared to the
conventional industry
We don‟t know how the financial crisis has
affected different aspects of the food system
We examined recent US data to find out
6. The food industry is resilient
There is evidence of leveling off in organic
and specialty sales
There is sustained interest in local and
„whole‟ food and its role in health and
community well-being
This interest has spawned policy innovation
in local food systems
Those regions with an ethos and history of
sustainable food are fairing better than those
without
13. “The Whole Foods movement is the „Age of the
Unthinkable‟ for processed foods”
Food Navigator, April 5, 2011
Places that have successful food producers and
manufactures are those that already have an
ethos of incorporating sustainable and fairness
elements into products and processes
14. New food entrepreneurs differ from back- to-
the-landers of the 1960s
The new entrepreneurs are often well
educated children of baby boomers who add
business acumen to the idealism of an older
generation
New food entrepreneurs are urban-oriented
and engaged in solving pressing societal
problems like energy use, food
safety, hunger, community development
Back40
veg, PEC
15. Local community development through food
is not a fad
Those regions with a history and ethos of
environmentally and socially friendly
practices are fairing better than those
without
The new urban oriented food entrepreneur is
an asset
16. Thereare success stories all across the food
chain, but we will focus on two types of
regions, the ingredients towards their
success, and lessons learned
Case 1: The Revitalizing Region
Saving itself through food - Hardwick, Vermont
Case 2: The Established Foodie Region
A rich food network of producers, food
writers, restaurants, farmers markets –
Portland, Maine
17. Hardwick is a town in Vermont with a
population of 3,200
“Facing a Main Street dotted with vacant stores, residents of this
hardscrabble community are reaching into its past to secure its
future, betting on farming to make Hardwick the town that was saved by
food”. NYTimes
http://vimeo.com/7729181
18. 75-100 new jobs
Creating new food businesses with
institutional partners
Downtown revitalized through new
restaurants and food stores
New investment dollars flowing into
community
Successful national marketing campaign
19. 1. Working collectively as a community
“Across the country a lot of people are doing
it individually but it’s rare when you see the
kind of collective they are pursuing,” said Mr.
Fried, whose firm considers social and
environmental issues when investing. “The
bottom line is they are providing jobs and
making it possible for others to have their own
business.”
20. 2.
Establishing the Center for an Agricultural
Economy
An industrial park for agricultural businesses
3. Securing the Vermont Food Venture Center
Agricultural producers rent kitchen space and get
business advice for adding value to raw
ingredients
24. National awards and accolades
High ratio of local restaurants to chain
outlets
High per capita number of local CSAs and
farmer‟s markets
High per capita number of food
stores, shops, cookbook stores, kitchen
stores
High per capita number of
brewpubs, microbreweries, wine bars, etc.
25. Great product (native ingredients from
across the food chain)
Talented chefs with a cooperative yet
competitive spirit
Do-it-yourself attitude toward food and
admiration of diverse culinary traditions
Signature “regional” meal - breakfast
Lead cultural firms that led to spin-offs
Engaged residents with high expectations and
supportive of regional food
26. Ontario is currently witnessing an explosion
of interest in local, sustainable and high-
quality, accessible food, yet more needs to
be done to put Ontario‟s rural communities
on the map for their food culture
27. Where does your community fit into the food
equation?
Do you have a strong agricultural base?
Do you have good local infrastructure?
Do you have a foodie culture?
Who are your “food” champions?
Do you collaborate with surrounding regions?
Do you market your region? (dedicated food
writers)
28. Continue to develop infrastructure for local food
products
Conduct a foodie IQ test for your community
Embrace the new urban-oriented food
entrepreneur
Develop better collaboration with all actors in
the food chain for a place-based food vision
Engage better marketing services for local
producers of high quality food and drink
29. Donald, B. et al., 2010. “Re-regionalizing the Food System”
Special Issue, Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and
Society
Sims, R. 2010. “Putting Place on the Menu” Journal of Rural
Studies, 26, 105-115.
Blay-Palmer, A. 2011. “Regional Food-Hub Project for Ontario”
Ghena, J. 2008. “The Downtown Coffee House Business”
Downtown Economics, Issue 138, Centre for Community and
Economic Development, University of Wisconsin-
Extension, Madison, WI.
Knutson, M. 2010. “Reinvesting restaurants (and rural
communities), Centre for Rural Affairs, Lyons, NE
Ngo, Minh K. 2011. “The Place of Food: …new urban oriented
farmers in rural…Ontario”, MA Thesis, Carlton University
Specific places to check out:
Organic Valley Cooperative and the impact it has had on the very rural
village of LaFarge Wisconsin
New Mexico‟s Dreaming vision
30. The Journal of Ag Food Systems and Community
Development
Another often cited community for its focus on food
and economic development is Woodbury County Iowa
www.woodburyorganics.com
American Planning Association‟s resource page on
food systems planning
http://www.planning.org/nationalcenters/health/foo
d.htm and their special issue on food planning with a
number of community examples
http://www.planning.org/planning/2009/aug/index.
htm from Vancouver, Berkeley, Montreal
Community studies featured in the book “Culinary
Tourism” by Lucy Long. This is mainly an
anthropological text and includes international
communities
31. Queen‟s University
SSHRC grant on sustainable food and regional
economic development, no. 864-07-0101
Heather Hall and Sean Field
Dr. Yolande Chan and the staff at the
Monieson Centre, Queen‟s School of Business
Mr. Harold Flaming, Ontario Rural Council
Farmers, food entrepreneurs, food educators
and rural communities across North America
for their time and devotion to making our
food system better for all
Notas del editor
Innovation came in many forms: new products, processes, designs, delivery or waste disposal systems
Opportunity for rural Ontario to twin city with a fair trade food community in a developing country
We don’t know what is fad versus more fundamental transformation?We examined data from the US to find outWhy?The heart of the recessionThe heart of the agro-industrial food systemRegional innovations in alternative food culture Specialty Food Industry, Food and Industry Trade Magazines,
Mention UK – golden child of the recession, Ontario’s strength in food processingMention postindustrial cities like Detroit,Clevland and Buffalo
US Specialty Product Reports, special order
More consumers still passionate about environmentally friendly consumption and consumption of locally produced, even home-grown foodsMore consumers seeking simple pleasure and authentic experiences which enable people to regain confidenceMore consumers interested in agri-tourism and a yearning for ‘back to the land’ experience and deeper attachment to place and its authenticity
Why I choose these places and not Europe (not a long history (like Europe), similar to Canada in this way - rugged individualism, determination, buy local campaigns, similar climate to ours, challenging economic regions in general)
<iframesrc="http://player.vimeo.com/video/7729181?title=0&amp;byline=0&amp;portrait=0" width="400" height="300" frameborder="0"></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/7729181">High Mowing Organic Seeds on "Dan Rather Reports"</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/highmowingseeds">High Mowing Organic Seeds</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>
Attracting, retaining and celebrating talented entrepreneurs
Portland has developed a national reputation for the quality of its restaurants and eateries. In 2009, Portland was named the "Foodiest Small Town in America" by Bon Appetit magazine, and was featured in the New York Times as a food destinationMany local chefs have gained national attention over the past few years
For smaller centres, a simple
Refer to Alison Blay-Palmer’s work here on the regional food hubsIn terms of strong agricultural base – do you have good local infrastructure?How does on community do on foodie indicators?Do you have good quality local restaurants? Farmer’s markets, CSAs, accessible food stores and cooking shops?Food is the first thing a tourist, or potential business entrepreneur looks for in a town?Champions in the community? Chefs? Master Baker? Food writers? Economic Developer?Do you collaborate with surrounding regions to create a food hub?
Continue to develop infrastructure for local food products (e.g., farmer’s markets, local procurement, local abattoirs, local creameries, cold storage, canning facilities, etc.)Conduct a foodie IQ test for your community (community coffee shops? local restaurants, farmer’s markets, food stores? good press?)Embrace the new urban-oriented food entrepreneur into your communityDevelop better collaboration with all actors in the food chain to find a place-based food vision for your town( e.g., Hardwick)Engage better marketing services for local producers of high quality food and drink (e.g, local food writer? blogger?)