There are so many great local options in the Northwest. For example, did you know that Oregon cranberries are among the finest in the world? Why? Our moderate climate means the berries can stay on the vine longer. As a result, they are bigger, sweeter, and more red than other commercially available cranberries. Watch the video below and then type the word “cranberries” into the search box above to support one of the many cranberry growers in FoodHub.

We are thankful for the fertility of this region and the resourcefulness of its growers and cooks.

FoodHub is an online resource linking area food buyers with the region’s farmers and food processors

Appeared in print: Sunday, Oct 17, 2010

This spring, under chef Melissa Williams wanted Oregon cranberries to sprinkle on salads. She knew they existed, grown in bogs around Coos Bay. “Somebody must be drying them,” she remembers thinking.
Ordinarily, finding a new local food would mean a multi-hour quest, involving many phone calls.

But this time she tapped into the newly created regional FoodHub internet site — and instantly posted her desire for cranberries before an audience of hundreds of farmers, food processors and other suppliers.

That’s how she learned that Hummingbird Wholesale — only 10 blocks from the restaurant — not only stocked the cranberries, but also dried them locally and finished them with a touch of Oregon blackberry honey.

“It’s hysterical to me how the connections can be happening a mile apart or 100 miles apart,” said Deborah Kane, a project director at the Portland-based Ecotrust, which founded FoodHub.

FoodHub is a virtual marketplace launched in February and intended to re-create a regional economy for meat, vegetables and other foodstuffs by linking wholesale buyers and sellers in Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Montana, Idaho and California.

The project sits at the apex of at least a half dozen social movements:

The FoodHub gets more local foods into the locavores’ grocery stores. It serves the farm-to-school movement by helping food service directors find local foods in quantities they need. It can mean that food travels fewer miles between farm and table, reducing green house gases.

The FoodHub also allows for smaller-scale food production, which some regard as safer than larger multi-state operations. And chefs are insisting on the delicate colors and flavors of vegetable varieties that no longer have to be bred for sturdiness to withstand long-haul shipping.

Offered fresh this week on FoodHub: late season green beans, chestnuts, winter squash, Jonagold apples, apple-finished pork, and gourmet lamb to be butchered in November.

“It’s getting pretty exciting to grow a lot of food in Oregon, sell it in Oregon and Washington — and people no longer have to buy from China,” said James Henderson, farm liaison with Hummingbird Wholesale. “Farmers are taking better care of the land, and we’re making a living, so it’s all good, good, good.”

The tighter the farmer-buyer-consumer cycle, the greater the potential for profit for the region.

The Willamette Farm and Food Coalition estimates that Lane County residents spend $1 billion on food annually. Today, only 3 percent of that stays with local farmers.

“Every connection that gets made on the FoodHub,” Kane said, “is a sale that didn’t leave the region.”

The FoodHub was created with grants from federal, state and local government — including from the Eugene Water & Electric Board, which was an early supporter.

Businesses pay $100 a year to use the site, although many have been offered scholarships to jump start the system. So far, more than 620 buyers and sellers have signed up.

Kane expects the FoodHub will be self-supporting on fees alone in about two years.

Forging links

Creating an Internet link between farmers and restaurateurs was an obvious move, Kane said, because each group is dependent on the other’s success. But the link didn’t arise in the ether the way that other business sites do.

“The food and ag community, they’re kind of late adopters,” Kane said. “Think of where they’re operating physically. Farmers are in fields; chefs are in kitchen.

“On the chef’s side, it has largely been a fax-and-phone kind of business. I would say the same is true on the farm side,” she said.

The FoodHub designers had to consider how much business information the farmers — who had historically been relatively private — would be willing to share on the web, Kane said.

The FoodHub offers a lot of choice, she said. “Their profile is theirs to manage. They’re sharing as much or as little as they feel comfortable with,” she said.

Linda Davies, a manager at Winter Green Farm at Noti, said the FoodHub is pretty comfortable to use.

“If I send a message out — whoever responds to me, it’s not public. If five farmers respond to me, the other farmers don’t know who has responded to me. It’s all like regular, closed e-mail. It’s all individual. You have to make personal contacts and then do your business.”

The buyers

Buyers on FoodHub so far include 35 bakeries, 46 caterers, 19 colleges or universities, 42 food service contractors, 48 grocery stores, 14 hospitals or other health facilities, 92 restaurants and 73 public schools — from Burgerville to Eugene School District to the Oregon State Prison.

“You have all these food service directors in the state of Oregon who really didn’t know where to begin,” Kane said. “FoodHub has given them a place to start.

“They can come into the site and immediately type in arugula or tomato or carrots — or whatever it is they’re looking for — and get a really nice list of qualified producers that might be in their area.”

The FoodHub database lists 2,000 products, including all the standard vegetables and meats, plus venison, beers and spices.

In July, chef Williams at Adam’s Sustainable Table used the FoodHub to locate enough rocket greens for 350 plates when catering the International Pinot Noir conference in McMinnville.

This week the restaurant has posted a call for goat butter.

Banquet chef Tim Hill at the Lane Community College conference center joined FoodHub a week ago and said he hopes to buy a lot of local foods.

“Sustainability is a key point of our business. We would really like to do anything we can do to help the local economy and to cut down on carbon emissions. It’s a better product, too, almost always.”

Tim Stevens, co-owner of Vanilla Jill’s frozen yogurt at the Coburg Station, said he sources everything he can locally. His FoodHub profile said he buys a dozen items including eggs, almonds, hardy kiwi and rhubarb.

Chef Eric Bertrand at Ratatouille bistro at Crescent Village in North Eugene said the FoodHub is a great concept,

“I made connections with some people I really enjoy. And I found some new suppliers for me,” he said. “I go at least once a week to check on what’s going on there.”

The sellers

The FoodHub’s sellers include 11 bakeries, five breweries, 15 dairies, 241 farmers, 23 fishermen, 14 wineries and 98 food processors or manufacturers.

They seek links with specific buyers, or — when they have an oversupply of a certain crop — they post their produce on the FoodHub’s marketplace, for instance: “I’ve got 500 pounds of late season heirlooms. Call with your best offer.”

Some of the sales have been mind blowing for long-time farmers, Kane said. This week, for example, the Woodburn School District sought 700 pounds of carrots.

“We keep hearing story after story from farmers who never imagined in a million years that they would be selling to schools,” Kane said. “That was a market that went away a long time ago as the nation commodified the products that were being sent to schools.”

Farmer David Hoyle of Creative Growers in Noti already had buyers for most of his crop of heirloom vegetables this year, but he signed up and created a profile for his company on FoodHub.

“We sat back fisherman-style,” he said. “We were asking ‘Who was out there that we weren’t working with, who was flying under our radar and who would see our profile (and) take a bite.”

The listing brought him three new accounts.

Future business opportunities will be made plain when the FoodHub aggregates all the supplies and all the demands at the site’s first-year anniversary. Already, Kane can see unfulfilled demand for all things poultry.

“Eggs. Absolutely. Free range eggs. Farm fresh eggs. People can’t get enough chickens. They can’t get enough eggs,” she said.
]]> http://food-hub.org/news/2010/10/eugene-area-foodhub-members-make-the-news/feed/ 0 http://food-hub.org/news/2010/10/5-tips-for-success-from-foodhub/ http://food-hub.org/news/2010/10/5-tips-for-success-from-foodhub/#comments Fri, 15 Oct 2010 18:08:14 +0000 Deborah http://food-hub.org/news/?p=531 Using FoodHub to increase your business connections is easy. Here are five simple steps you can take to maximize your chance of success on FoodHub.

1.       Upload a Photo: Uploading a photo to your profile personalizes your information. Use a photo of yourself, your operation or your logo.

2.       Be specific: Be specific about your selling/buying protocols so that people know how to do business with you. Check out Cascade School District’s profile to see a great descriptive paragraph about how to do business with them.

3.       Tell your story: Telling your story gives a personal touch to your profile – letting people know who you are, what your values are and why they should do business with you. Check out Hummingbird Wholesale’s profile for a great example of a personal story.

4.       Update Your Product List: Complete a product list and update it as seasons and availability change. If you’ve listed all your products on your profile, people will find you when they search for that product. SELLERS: If you haven’t listed all the products you sell on your profile via the “My Products” tab, you WILL NOT SHOW UP in search results. If you haven’t created a product list, check out Barking Moon Farm’s impressive product list.

5.       Check and respond to your FoodHub Messages! People may be contacting you to do business with you! Many of these messages are time sensitive; don’t let a business opportunity pass you by.

Summary

The Sales & Marketing Director is responsible for the development and implementation of a strategic and tactical sales and marketing plan that will result in achieving aggressive FoodHub membership goals. The Sales & Marketing Director is a key member of the FoodHub project team as well as the Ecotrust Food & Farms program team.

FoodHub

FoodHub is a new online marketplace and directory that makes it easy and efficient for regional food buyers and sellers to find each other, connect and do business. Launched in February 2010, FoodHub is quickly becoming the leading resource for regional food trade in the Pacific Northwest. FoodHub is a project of the nonprofit Ecotrust; more information is available online at food-hub.org and ecotrust.org/foodfarms.

Responsibilities

Duties are varied and will include, among others:

• Develop and implement strategic and tactical sales and marketing plans; oversee all necessary activities to achieve membership goals.
• In addition to responsibilities related to recruiting new members, oversee efforts designed to retain existing memberships from year to year.
• Recruit, train and manage additional staff to help achieve membership goals, such as FoodHub Ambassadors and commissioned sales representatives.
• Maintain and service existing key relationships and develop new strategic partnerships to further FoodHub’s goals.
• Define and develop key messages and identify priority target audiences.

• Working in partnership with creative staff, oversee creation of all marketing and outreach materials and maintain brand cohesion across multiple platforms.
• Working in partnership with public relations staff, develop story concepts and generate earned media to support membership goals.
• Serve as a key voice of FoodHub, contributing to FoodHub social media such as Facebook, Twitter, newsletters and FoodHub’s online “News” section
• Act as one of several FoodHub spokespeople, delivering polished and professional presentations.
• In collecting data on members, inquiries, conversions and website activity, review existing data collection systems, suggest and implement improvements. Provide timely and reliable sales reports, analyzing past performance and proposing adjustments as necessary.
• Work in partnership with the FoodHub team to develop ideas for new services or features, market expansion and additional revenue generating opportunities.

Requirements

This position requires an experienced professional adept both at developing and executing sales and marketing plans. This is a hands-on position in a dynamic and fast paced environment. Requirements include:

• Proven track record of designing and executing marketing campaigns and managing sales teams;
• Demonstrated ability to deliver results on a limited budget and short time frame;

• Experience promoting online programs and services;
• Strong public speaking and written communication skills;
• Ten or more years experience in a marketing or sales position, preferably in food and agriculture or online environments;
• A self-starter with strong initiative and ability to work independently as well as manage and motivate a team;
• Results-oriented, hard working, long-term professional with a willingness to travel within the region and occasionally nationally.
• Management experience with hiring/firing and supervising a small staff, budgeting, fundraising, writing, speaking, and interpersonal skills.

The position is full-time, based in Portland, Oregon. Salary is staggered and will increase as sales and marketing goals are achieved. Ecotrust offers an excellent benefits package including retirement plan match, medical and dental insurance, flexible spending account, life insurance and disability coverage.

To apply, complete the application on the Ecotrust website and forward with a cover letter and resume to: email with FoodHub Sales & Marketing Director in the subject line by June 30, 2010.

Phone inquiries are politely declined.

Discounts on Annual Registration Fee Now Available for Northwest Food Buyers and Sellers

PORTLAND, Ore. — June 10, 2010 – With a desire to sustain and regionalize the Northwest food economy, ten regional businesses are generously underwriting portions of an annual FoodHub membership fee for hundreds of potential users.

FoodHub is a new online marketplace and directory that helps regional food buyers and sellers find each other, connect and do business. A social venture initiative of the nonprofit Ecotrust, FoodHub is designed to increase food trade in the Pacific Northwest.  It is the only network of its kind that accommodates food producers and food buyers of every scale and production type across such a significant geographic range.

To incentivize Northwest farmers, ranchers, fishermen and food buyers of all kinds to join FoodHub now, ten diverse entities from the region’s food and farming community have brought discounts, ranging from 20 to 80 percent off the annual $100 membership fee, to the table.

“The strength of FoodHub lies in the connections made possible by a robust and active network of buyers and sellers,” said Deborah Kane, vice president of Ecotrust’s Food and Farms program and creator of FoodHub.  “Our partners are applauding the ease and efficiency that FoodHub brings to the process of sourcing and moving more regional food through the supply chain.  They want to make joining and using FoodHub accessible for everyone, so they’re dangling a carrot that’s too sweet to resist.”

Select discounts are limited time offers, so food buyers and sellers are encouraged to act now by visiting www.food-hub.org.

• THRIVE (The Rogue Initiative for a Vital Economy): THRIVE members receive a 20 percent discount now through June 30, 2010.

• Oregon Tilth: Operations certified organic by Oregon Tilth receive a 20 percent discount now through June 30, 2010.

• Organic Valley: To encourage food buyers at public K-12 schools, school districts and child care centers to source locally produced foods, the 51 Northwest dairy families of Organic Valley cooperative are offering to cover 80 percent of the annual FoodHub membership fee through June 30, 2010.

• Food Services of America (FSA): FSA will underwrite 50 percent of the FoodHub membership fee for the first 100 FSA restaurant or school customers to register.

• SYSCO: SYSCO will underwrite 50 percent of the FoodHub membership fee for any produce farmer in Oregon and Washington up to 100 producers.

• Eugene Water and Electric Board: Food buyers and sellers located in the McKenzie River watershed qualify for a 75 percent discount now through April 2011, thanks to a grant made to the Eugene Water and Electric Board from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation – Oregon Governor’s Fund for the Environment.

• Friends of French Prairie: Members receive an unrestricted offer of 20 percent off the annual FoodHub membership fee.

• Gorge Grown Network: Farmers and food buyers in Hood River, Wasco and Sherman counties in Oregon or Klickitat and Skamania counties in Washington qualify for a 20 percent discount, now through May 30, 2011.

Additional offers will soon be announced thanks to partnerships with New Seasons Market and the Oregon Farm Bureau.

About Ecotrust’s Food & Farms Program

FoodHub is an Ecotrust project made possible by the generous support and contributions of many. Ecotrust’s mission is to inspire fresh thinking that creates social equity, economic opportunity, and environmental well being. With regard to our Food & Farms program, we improve public understanding of agriculture and the challenges it faces and increase the market share of regionally grown, processed, and manufactured foods. Whether by introducing a farmer to a chef or a food processor to an institutional buyer, Ecotrust is a trusted “benevolent broker” that has been making connections between food buyers and sellers in the Pacific Northwest for a decade. Learn more at ecotrust.org.

#  #  #

The data creates a county-by-county view of the continental United States, indicating the concentration of small farms raising cattle, hogs and pigs, and chicken, and also noting the location of nearby state slaughter facilities and small and very small federal slaughter establishments. The USDA defines “small slaughter establishments” as those having between 10 and 499 employees, and “very small slaughter establishments” as having fewer than 10 employees or less than $2.5 million in annual sales. For the purpose of the study, small livestock and poultry producers are those who have annual sales of $250,000 or less.

The presentation “Slaughter Availability to Small Livestock and Poultry Producers – Maps” may be found at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/PDF/KYF_maps-050410_FOR_RELEASE.pdf.

Inquiries can be made to the Small Plant Help-Desk by toll-free telephone or by e-mail. The Help-Desk is open from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays. To speak to a staff specialist during this time, call 1-877-FSISHelp (1-877-374-7435). Customers may also contact the help-desk by e-mail at InfoSource@fsis.usda.gov.

For information on loan and grant programs that can be used to support local food initiatives, including initiatives involving new or existing meat and poultry slaughter facilities, contact USDA Rural Development (RD) at 1-800-670-6553. For information on RD programs on the Internet, go to www.rurdev.usda.gov. Or, visit your nearest USDA Rural Development Office.

Already a FoodHub member? Perfect! These orientations will help you make the most of FoodHub.

Not yet a member? You can sign up onsite at the orientation. Winners of our raffle drawing will earn membership discounts.

We’re looking forward to connecting with you in person – food buyers and sellers alike. Grab a friend or neighbor and join us:

Monday, May 10 — Seattle, WA

Time: 2:00 – 3:30 pm
Place: Palace Ballroom, 2100 5th Ave.

Kindly RSVP by May 7 to Susan Wilch, FoodHub Member Services: 503-467-0816 or susan@food-hub.org

Thursday, May 20 — Enterprise, OR

Kindly RSVP to Sarah Miller of the Northeast Oregon Economic Development District by May 17 for the location and time: 541-426-3598 or saramiller@neoedd.org

Don’t live near Seattle or Enterprise? Let your friends who do know about these trainings. Want us to come and give an orientation in your area? Let us know. We’d love to connect with you in person.

It’s like cloning without the messy ethical issues. Now there are four times the number of people out in the field representing FoodHub to food buyers and sellers.

Please join us in welcoming Gorge Grown Network, Columbia Blue Mountain RC&D, Friends of French Prairie, Good Company (representing Eugene Water & Electric Board), and Willamette Farm & Food Coalition to the team.

What’s a FoodHub Ambassador?
FoodHub Ambassadors represent FoodHub either in a specific geographic area or to a particular category of food buyer or seller.

Should you or your organization become a FoodHub Ambassador?
Does your organizational work plan already include a mandate to connect food buyers and sellers? Including FoodHub in your on-going activities may help you reach your goals. Do you represent a university department, extension agency, or economic development bureau already tasked with helping producers strengthen their marketing capacity? FoodHub can be another tool in your tool belt. Are you someone that already interacts with a wide variety of food buyers and/or sellers and hopes to see them succeed? FoodHub could strengthen your efforts.

Please join us! Learn more about the FoodHub Ambassador program and how to apply here.

Please apply or be in touch with us by Thursday, May 6th. The next two FoodHub Ambassador trainings are scheduled for:

• Seattle, WA: Tuesday, May 11th, 1 – 3:30 pm
• Enterprise, OR: Wednesday, May 19th, 1 – 3:30 pm

FoodHub Ambassadors represent FoodHub within a specific community, help increase the number of food buyers and sellers who are registered on FoodHub, solicit feedback, and provide suggestions for new features and improvements to maximize FoodHub’s impact. FoodHub Ambassadors are a critical part of the FoodHub team.

Who should apply?

We encourage gregarious, well-respected individuals with extensive networks already in place to apply. Ecotrust is especially interested in hearing from “unlikely” partners.

Does your organizational work plan already include a mandate to connect food buyers and sellers? Perhaps including FoodHub in your on-going activities would help you reach your goals. Do you represent a university department or extension agency or economic development bureau already tasked with helping producers strengthen their marketing capacity? Perhaps FoodHub could be another tool in your tool belt. Are you someone that already interacts with a wide variety of food buyers and/or sellers and hopes to see them succeed? FoodHub could strengthen your efforts.

What does being an Ambassador entail?

Duties are varied depending on the community and the time commitment made by individual Ambassadors. Activities may include, but are not limited to:

• Represent FoodHub at regional meetings and conferences, running workshops, giving presentations, staffing booths, etc.
• Organize and host information sessions or trainings
• Compile mailing lists for promotional efforts
• Respond to general inquiries from your service area or constituent group
• Periodically check in with FoodHub members to gauge satisfaction and solicit feedback
• Contribute to the FoodHub blog, particularly the Member Profiles and Best Practices sections
• Evaluate and make recommendations on promotional opportunities
• Provide feedback on FoodHub features and suggest improvements or changes as necessary

Training is required

FoodHub Ambassadors are required to participate in:

1)      A preliminary training session.

2)      Monthly check in calls with other FoodHub Ambassadors and FoodHub staff to share updates, provide feedback, learn best practices, etc.

Benefits

FoodHub Ambassadors receive immediate access to a proven tool for connecting regional food buyers and sellers. Specific benefits include, but are not limited to:

• Free FoodHub account to enjoy all the benefits of FoodHub membership
• Access to geographically specific and aggregated data on the state of the regional food economy (helpful for white papers, program planning, grant reports, etc.)
• Ability to periodically query FoodHub members (in tandem with on-going FoodHub evaluations)

Need something specific in exchange for your service as an Ambassador? Just ask.

Compensation

While Ecotrust is open to a variety of different proposals and approaches, we anticipate the majority of FoodHub Ambassadors will either not require compensation or require only a modest stipend to cover incidental travel and meeting costs.

How to apply:

Please send a short letter of inquiry that addresses the following questions:

• Are you interested in representing FoodHub as an individual or on behalf of an organizational entity?
• Why are you interested in representing FoodHub?
• Are you interested in representing FoodHub within a certain geography or to a certain constituency? Please detail/define.
• Please describe you or your organization’s relevant experience as it relates to food and agriculture.
• Please describe you or your organization’s relevant experience as it relates to the geography or constituency you wish to serve.
• Please briefly touch on any proposed activities or preliminary plans for how you might support FoodHub. Comment too on your availability and/or time constraints.
• Do you require compensation or does working with FoodHub align with on-going activities?

Submit letters of inquiry to:

Deborah Kane
Ecotrust / FoodHub
dkane@ecotrust.org
subject line: Ambassador Program

Q&A with Sustainable Business Oregon

Portland’s Deborah Kane, vice president of the food and farms program with Ecotrust, was named by Fast Company magazine as one of the 10 most inspiring people in sustainable food, alongside such names as Michael Pollan, author of the Omnivore’s Dilemma, Jamie Oliver, of the television program The Naked Chef, and Robert Kenner, the director of the documentary Food Inc.

Kane was honored in part because of her work on FoodHub, the online match-making service that connects chefs with food producers, that was launched by Ecotrust earlier this year.

Sustainable Business Oregon checked in with Kane to talk about the Fast Company list and to catch up on FoodHub:

Q: How has this honor changed your work week?

A: It has made me spend a lot of time thinking about my equally deserving colleagues and peers; in some cases it’s provided the perfect excuse for some fun trips down memory lane. I’ve been fortunate to work with hundreds of colleagues who just as easily could have been on this “top 10” list.

Q: Which of your co-honorees would you most like to share a meal with?

A: Jamie Oliver, no question. A lot of what we do at Ecotrust involves trying to change the school food landscape. Jamie once did a video in which he made, from scratch, chicken nuggets with school kids. I think he was following the ingredient list from one of the major food processing companies that supply chicken nuggets to schools. Having seen what goes into some school chicken nuggets, every kid in the room opted for the baked chicken breast. I thought it was brilliant and I’d love to get to tell him that in person.

Q: How are things going with FoodHub since the launch?

Continues… Find the complete Q&A at www.SustainableBusinessOregon.com.