FoodHub is currently in beta.
WOW! Check out the Davidson Commodities profile. (Hit ‘Browse’ and sort by ‘D’ or search for one of their great products, like lentils, and they’ll pop right up.)
Don’t you love the way they describe their business, their practices, their philosophy on partnerships, their willingness to send samples? I feel like I now know enough about them to know I want to know more!
Does your profile do all it can to market your business?
FoodHub is thrilled to be providing underwriting support to KPLU, the Seattle/ Tacoma NPR affiliate radio station. As part of the underwriting package, we had to boil the essence of FoodHub down to a statement that could be read in 20 seconds. Seemed like a daunting task at first but, really, the essence of FoodHub is simple: “FoodHub connects buyers and sellers of regional food.”
We had to run down the clock so we elaborated a bit, but the whole exercise got us thinking about how much one can accomplish in 20 seconds. Quite a lot, it turns out.
Here are just a few of the things you could do in 20 seconds on FoodHub:
We’ve already welcomed new FoodHub members who told us they heard about us on KPLU. What about you? Have you heard our 20 seconds of fame?
For 1000 Friends of Oregon’s 35th anniversary – and Oregon’s 151st birthday – the non profit decided to celebrate the past, present and future by honoring 35 Innovators Under 35…young Oregonians making a difference in their communities while continuing Oregon’s proud legacy of an active, engaged citizenry.
We were pleased to see so many award winners working on food and agriculture issues. Quite a few FoodHub members too! Here’s an abbreviated list of the award winners.
Gina Bell
Forest Grove
Gina helped get the Forest Grove Farmers Market off the ground and now manages the market. She is also Director of Development for Adelante Mujeres, a community-based organization that helps immigrant families achieve self-determination through 3 areas: Education, Empowerment & Enterprise.
Abby Bradbury
Langlois
Abby started Abby’s Greens, her own direct-marketing farm business in Bandon, while home on summer vacation during college. Her determination and commitment to providing local food for her region has helped her business blossom over the past 5 years. She works alongside her sister Zoe and her mother Betsy to re-invigorate the local food movement on Oregon’s south coast.
Zoë Bradbury (FOODHUB Member)
Langlois
A farmer and freelance writer, Zoe’s work in sustainable agriculture has engaged her with numerous non-profits, including Ecotrust, the Agriculture and Land-based Training Association, the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture, and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.
Jen Brown
Corvallis
Jen is currently the Director of the Farm to School program at the Corvallis Environmental Center. Previously, she was the Education Director at the Watershed Project, where she ran the Kids in Gardens and Kids in Creeks programs.
Cory Carman (FOODHUB Member)
Wallowa
A fourth-generation rancher, Cory returned home after spending years working on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Cory has become a leader in the local grass-fed livestock movement and promotes the ecological health of the land by monitoring local grasses and analyzing prime feeding spots on the ranch.
Zach Christensen
McMinnville
A 5th-generation Yamhill County hazelnut farmer, Zach works to keep the agriculture industry in Oregon sustainable and profitable. He is currently President of the Yamhill County Farm Bureau.
Home on the Range Beef, a FoodHub member, recently posted a nice YouTube video. Check it out.
When you are located far from your customers, there’s no better way to tell your story than through great photos and images. We especially love the image of the cowboy hats on the wall! How are you telling your story to potential customers?
Today we’re headed to Hermiston, Oregon to meet with buyers and sellers in eastern Oregon. On the way home we stop in Hood River for an open house at the Hood River library (1:30 pm on Tuesday, February 9th).
Be sure to watch the events section within FoodHub for information about when we’ll be in your area. Also don’t hesitate to be in touch with an invitation. The more miles we travel, the more conversations we get to have about creating connections between regional food buyers and sellers.
Are you watching the box in the right hand side of your dashboard? Members, click on dashboard now. Better yet, click on Marketplace and make sure you aren’t missing an opportunity to do business.
Here’s just a few of the posts we’ve seen recently:
In the “WANTED” category:
In the “AVAILABLE” category:
They say you never have a second chance to make a first impression.
When a food buyer or seller sees your business listing for the first time after clicking Browse on FoodHub, what do they see? Nothing!? Or a pithy two or three lines of text that make them want to learn more about you?
On the SELLER side, check out:
Cattail Creek Lamb: Cattail Creek Lamb has been growing lambs in the Willamette Valley and selling lamb meat direct to restaurants, stores, and institutional buyers for 25 years. We’ve got the most tender and flavorful fresh dry-aged lamb you’ve ever had year round.
Applegate Valley Artisan Breads: We deliver a superior product and are willing to work with each chef in order to give them the exact type of breads that compliment their menus.
Creative Growers: Creative Growers grows certified organic vegetables and herbs for restaurants. All our products are handled and packaged to minimize the handling in the kitchen. Products are harvested to the order, and specifications of the individual chef.
On the BUYER side, check out:
Bamboo Sushi: Bamboo Sushi is the world’s first certified, sustainable sushi restaurant. We are dedicated to sourcing the highest quality fish, meats, and produce with the utmost concern for marine stewardship and sustainability.
Bon Appetit INTEL: INTEL’s several corporate campuses enjoy the Northwest’s finest local ingredients because of our commitment to supporting local farmers and food producers through our popular Farm to Fork program.
Garden State: We’re a food cart in Sellwood, specializing in Italian street food. Our goal is to be serving food produced locally whenever possible!
What kind of first impression are you making?
On Day 3 hosting USDA Undersecretary Ann Wright, we started off with a tour of New Seasons Market with President Lisa Sedlar; I think Ann was impressed. From New Seasons we were off to the Oregonian for an editorial board meeting to talk about Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food.
But really the highlight of the day was cutting the red ribbon to mark the official launch of FoodHub at Ecotrust.
Thank you to one and all who participated. We were joined by WSDA Director Dan Newhouse, ODA Director Katy Coba, USDA’s Vicki Walker, FIC’s Michael Mor
rissey, representatives from Whole Foods, Safeway, New Seasons, Food Services of America, SYSCO, Duck Delivery, Truitt Brothers, Bob’s Red Mill, Ladd Hill Orchards, Big B Farms, Nostrana, Oregon Tilth, Oregonians for Food & Shelter, the Bill Healy Foundation, the NW Health Foundation, Portland State University, Portland Public Schools, Gervais Public Schools, Oregon Agribusiness Council, Farm Bureau, OSU, Washington School Nutrition Association, First Harvest, GrowFood.org, Community Food Security Coalition, Willamette Farm & Food Coalition, Oregon Food Bank, Adelante Mujeres, Sungold Farm, FoodFront, Burgerville, Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission, and on and on and on.
The room was packed with luminaries of the Northwest food & farming community, all gathered to wish us well. THANK YOU. FoodHub is, was and always will be your resource. We’re looking forward to working with you well into the future.
After lunch we spent two hours designing association pages with dedicated colleagues and friends. Watch for those soon. And finally, we ended the day over yet another delicious meal with invigorating conversation. This time about school lunch reform.
Photos by Mike Davis
Day 2 with USDA Undersecretary Ann Wright began at the Eugene Local Food Connection conference. Ann gave a great keynote speech and we signed up 73 new FoodHub members. Welcome good people of Eugene!
From Eugene we raced to Philomath and Gathering Together Farm for a fantastic meal with Organically Grown Company and seed pioneer Frank Morton.
Next step? Stahlbush Island Farms for a tour of their new biogas facility. There I have one word: AMAZING. Stahlbush is a vertically integrated fruit and vegetable operation in the Willamette Valley. 
They power their production plant using the energy derived from vegetable scraps. It’s an entirely closed loop operation. They even sell energy back to the grid. Truly impressive.
After a tour of Stahlbush Island Farms we sat down for a discussion with area farmers and foresters. The conversation ranged from new organic dairy rules to inheritance taxes to immigration reform, Christmas trees (Oregon is home to the largest Christmas tree grower in the WORLD), wheat prices and the nursery industry (Oregon’s #1 agricultural crop), among many other fascinating topics.
Finally, we ended the day at Navarre in Portland where owner John Taboada joined us for dinner with Garry Stephenson from OSU’s Small Farms Program, Laura Masterson of 47th Avenue Farm, Kendra Kimbirauskas from Friends of Family Farmers, and Sarah Brown and Connor Voss, two young farmers just getting started.
Photo by Mike Davis
I picked up USDA Deputy Undersecretary Ann Wright at the airport today. She’s in the Northwest to help celebrate the official launch of FoodHub. Having out of town guests always gives one the opportunity to get out and about and that’s exactly what we did.
On our way to Eugene for the Local Food Connection conference we stopped at Mahonia Vineyards & Nursery (a FOODHUB member) to visit with Congressman Kurt Schrader and his wife, Oregon State Senator Martha Schrader. Congressman Schrader is a veterinarian and farmer who lives with his Martha on Three Rivers Farm in Canby where at one time they grew and sold organic fruit and vegetables. I had a chance to to show the Congressman and his wife FoodHub. Their response? “Where were you when we had all those organic lamb to sell!?” In other words, they liked it quite a bit.
From Mahonia we traveled on to Pacific Biodiesel. What an impressive operation! These guys will try to make biofuel from just about anything!
Our half day ended with a meal at Marche (a FOODHUB member) shared with Eugene area farmers and FoodHub members (Cattail Creek, Creative Growers and Afton Field Farm). Again, an impressive group of people!
Our thanks to Ann for making the trip. Touring her around the Northwest only serves to remind us how lucky we are.
