Is it necessary to dismantle the food supply chain?
O ur food supply chain has evolved to its current state because it is the most efficient way to move food from the area it is grown and raised to the masses in population centers. After the COVID pandemic, producers and consumers realized the shortcomings with this system. In an effort to make food more accessible to all consumers and add resiliency to the system, even in an emergency, our government and others have begun to focus more on local food.
Consumers want to know where their food comes from. And, they certainly have that right. One of the reasons we are open and transparent with our work at VanWinkle Ranch on social media, mainstream media and this column is the belief consumers have that right.
In recent years, as we have begun to sell our beef directly to our customers here in the Grand Valley, I have learned a lot about food processing, marketing and distributing. There is a lot to learn. Caring for the livestock, crops and stewarding the land takes a lot of expertise. Managing all segments from farm to fork is another challenge.
Recently, working through the ERC Fellowship at the Business Incubator Center with the AgriWest Initiative, I coordinated moving 7,000 pounds of ground beef from the members of the Mesa County Cattlemen’s Association family ranches to School District 51 Nutrition Services. The goal was to provide a locally sourced meatloaf in seven meals to our students in Mesa County for the 2024-2025 school year. The project required significant communications to accomplish. This included two procurement folks from School District 51, 12 local family beef producers, a veterinarian, a brand inspector, a USDA inspector, the manager/owner of the processing facility, a scheduler at the processing facility, workers at the processing facility and warehouse workers at D51 to receive product.
I transported the product from the processing facility to the D51 warehouse. More than 25 people were involved to ensure a safe and healthy product was delivered to our students. More drivers were required to load, deliver and unload at each school facility. Even more were involved in preparing, baking and serving the meatloaf.
Producing, processing, marketing and distributing in an efficient manner is the reason our current food system has evolved to where it is today. Our consumers expect to have a safe and reliable supply of food at the lowest possible price.
Can we do it better? Absolutely!
Should we completely dismantle the current food supply chain? I think not.
From my perspective as an experienced producer, and one who is learning about processing, marketing and distribution, I would suggest we consider the question carefully.
Local food is amazing. We all like to know how it was grown and cared for. What impact did it have on our environment? Is it the healthiest it can possibly be? But, if a family is experiencing hunger, the biggest questions are when and how will it get to our plate?
Purchasing local food, either for your family or for an institution, looks different than going to the grocery store or having a major distributor show up and unload your order. It is, at best, a bit inconvenient. Not everything is in one place. Some farms and/or markets may have more than one commodity, but not all items on your shopping list as you would experience at the grocery store. The packaging may look different on any given day, there may not be as many options for the same item. A particular product may not be available exactly when and where you were expecting for your menu. Perhaps, the item is only available in one size, not several choices. And, most likely, the cost will be different.
Size has its advantages, efficiency matters. Resiliency is important.
I would propose we consider local food and the modern food supply chain together. It can be an “and” proposition. It does not have to be “either/or.”
When we experience disruptions, such as during the pandemic, both will be important. Let us not prioritize one over the other. Let us work to ensure food is available no matter our circumstances, no matter where our family chooses to purchase food. We need large food producers that ensure safe, secure, nutritious food is available to the masses. We need local food producers to provide choices fitting for each family’s circumstances with the same level of safety, security, and nutrition.
We need all sizes of producers, all production methods and all commodities to provide for our communities, no matter where they are located. There is no need to dismantle the current food supply chain. Let us work toward the solution that includes local food distribution and larger production units to feed everyone. We can have both efficiency and resiliency by all of us working together.
Janie VanWinkle is co-owner and co-manager of VanWinkle Ranch with her husband, Howard. She is the past president of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association and was selected as a fellow by the Economic Development Administration’s new Economic Recovery Corps to lead AgriWest, an agriculture-focused economic development initiative administered by the Business Incubator Center.
