1. Low Income Latino Producer to
Consumer Connection
Anne Morse,
Adelante Mujeres
Stacey Sobell, M.P.H.,
Ecotrust and National Farm to School Network
Scott Ellis,
Portland State University

2. Project Overview
• Main Objectives:
• Empowering Low-Income Latino Farmers to Build Regional
Connections, Evaluate Farming Strategies, and Identify Clients
• Assess producer/consumer relationships among low-income
and Latino farmers and low-income consumers
• Build cultural competency of partners
• Identify actions to promote food security and health among low-
income producers and consumers of color
• Funding Streams:
• Northwest Health Foundation research grant
• Community Food Project planning grant

3. Partner Roles
Adelante Mujeres
• Lead organization
• Collaborated with partner organizations on community-based research
• Primary contact with low-income Latino community
Ecotrust
• Facilitated connections between farmers and potential buyers via the online
tool FoodHub (www.food-hub.org),
• Acted as a liaison with farm to school programming
• Helped share the story of our work
Portland State University
• Provided research and evaluation support : focus groups, surveys, analysis
• Assisted with development of promotional materials: website, recipes, etc.

7. Activities
Adelante:
Shared production and
distribution barriers
identified through direct
experience working with
Latino farmers

8. Activities
Adelante:
Worked with farmers and collaborating partners to identify
marketing opportunities

9. Activities
Adelante:
One-on-one evaluations with
participant farmers for the
2011 season

10. Activities
Ecotrust:
• Increase cultural
competency of
partners

11. Activities
Ecotrust:
• Explore models for increasing social equity on FoodHub
www.food-hub.org

12. Activities
Ecotrust:
• Explore opportunities to access regional markets via FoodHub

13. Activities
Stacey:
• Help connect farmers with potential buyers
– Local school districts
– Head Start, childcare
– Other institutions (e.g., Intel)

17. Activities
Ecotrust:
• Share the story of our work in
the community

18. Activities
PSU:
- Assessed production and networking
barriers
- Provided networking
research, promotional support, and
assistance in analyzing consumer
behavior
- Connected farmers with a local
undergraduate sustainability class
- Analysis of consumer behavior data
through the use of a Geographic
Information System (GIS) evaluation
- Presented potential marketing
strategies from data analysis results

19. Challenges
Adelante:
• Farmers face many marketing challenges
• Adelante Agricultura Program
– Assisting the farmers in finding markets
– How to provide marketing and distribution
support that empowers the farmer
• Forest Grove Farmers Market
– How to boost attendance at the market

20. Challenges
Ecotrust:
• Challenges with FoodHub:
– Need to be English-speaking and have computer
access/literacy
– Having an online liaison might not be sustainable in
the long-term
• Challenges with Farm to Institution:
– Unpredictable yields from farmers
– K-12 schools need regular sizing, amounts, delivery
and have tight budgets
– Takes time to develop new relationships

21. Challenges
PSU:
• Working with undergraduate students:
– Difficult to facilitate direct interaction with farmers
• Pilot Freshman research project:
– Lack of research experience
– Educational level and level of work expected to be
produced
• Challenges working with the farmers:
– Difficulty coordinating farmer schedules
– Strong voices that drowned out the opinions of others

22. Recommendations
Adelante:
• Right crop/right time
• Finding the right scale for new businesses that can’t tolerate a
lot of risk
• Think about a variety of marketing opportunities that can also
target low income consumers
• Start incrementally. Relationships take time to build and
require dedication and consistency
• Consistent communication with the farmers will help to
empower them in the development of their small businesses

23. Recommendations
Ecotrust:
• Strong community partner connections, “benevolent brokers”
• Web liaison for farmers/cooperative selling model
• Highlight social equity characteristics to set apart from other
sellers
• Build on small successes

24. Recommendations
PSU:
• Develop relationships with academic institutions to assist
with evaluation and analysis
• E.g., possible senior capstone project
• Community-based participatory research as a strategy
• Using GIS for analysis

25. Breakout Session
Activity:
In small groups use worksheets to strategize
around how to do the following in your own
communities:
1. Identify market challenges for underserved
producers
2. Connect underserved producers and consumers
3. Create your own action plan to increase:
a. Access to diverse markets for underserved
producers
b. Food security and health among underserved
consumers

26. Thank you!
Contact information
Anne Morse:
amorse@adelantemujeres.org | 503-992-2041
www.adelantemujeres.org
Stacey Sobell:
ssobell@ecotrust.org | 503-467-0751
www.ecotrust.org/farmtoschool/
Scott Ellis:
scott.ellis@pdx.edu