1.    Search FoodHub every week.
Anderson took his post at Genoa and Accanto in 2010, the same year FoodHub launched, and it became clear that the site was the perfect place for him to broaden his sourcing horizons. In that first year, Anderson made a connection with Creative Growers out of Noti, OR, and still works with them today (Read more about Creative Growers’ recipe for working successfully with local chefs here). Even after two years of using FoodHub Anderson says he still finds value in what the site brings to the table and that there are a few key ingredients for using it successfully.

“Have fun, search, pay attention to the miles away and be realistic,” he says. “Searching is the best function on FoodHub. I browse the site at least once or twice a week and I’ll spend anywhere from a half hour to an hour on it.”

Anderson also noted that buyers should update the product section of their profile to include those local products that they’re looking for and read the weekly Fresh Sheets that send product alerts and marketplace updates straight to buyers’ inboxes.

“We change the menus really often and being micro-seasonal is a big part of that,” Anderson says. “Since taking over here at Genoa I’ve been getting more involved in finding and developing connections. FoodHub has helped me do that for sure.”

2.    Find passionate producers.
“If you care about what you’re growing and it shows that’s the quickest way to a chef’s heart,” Anderson says of producers he prefers to work with. “Chefs are geeky about that stuff. I don’t know any chef that doesn’t get excited about an awesome head of this and a beautiful bunch of that.”

One of the challenges of creating quality connections is overcoming the hurdle posed by the limited amount of time chefs often have. But, Anderson says, there is an easy solution for that.

“Be persistent and understanding of chef’s times,” he says. “There are people that stop by to try to see me and it doesn’t work out all the time, but keep trying.”

Find passionate producers on FoodHub by paying attention to which ones have completed their profile. Photos, a completed About Us section, and a good description about how to do business with them says a lot about how serious a producer is about putting their best food forward.

3.    Be realistic about your needs.
FoodHub poses a unique opportunity for farmers and chefs to create relationships that allow for future crop planning based on a good match between the chef’s needs and the farmer’s capacity and growing capabilities. However, Anderson said, chefs need to be up front about their level of commitment when entering into these kinds of agreements.

“Really advance planning like looking out the next year is difficult for me because it’s hard to know that I really want to be doing,” he said. “I have lots of farms that say ‘Let us know if there’s anything you’d like us to grow.’ I understand how difficult that is for them because that involves space and time and lot of them don’t know what they’re yield is going to be like.”

Growing these kinds of relationships takes time. Start fostering them by clearly communicating and being realistic about your needs for the immediate future and going forward. Let your FoodHub profile help you with this by keeping your Product section updated as you make any updates to your menu. Use the How to do Business with Us section to give other Members an idea of how much product you use in any given week, when and how you accept deliveries and other factors – like a focus on seasonality or your customer type – that influence your buying habits and patterns.

4.    If you’re already a local sourcing superstar, consider taking your connection to the next level.
“There are a couple restaurants that have this next tier of farmer chef relationship where they’re basically growing everything for the restaurant,” Anderson says. “I think that’s the future – getting to that level of connection.”

If you have a flexible seasonal menu that changes regularly, add the most current version to your FoodHub profile. If your menu is less flexible but you want to have a local, steady supply of the same kinds of products throughout the year talk about ways you can help a grower you’re already working with fund season extension projects like hoop tunnels or green houses.

5.    Look for opportunities to connect in person.
“It’s such an organic thing: If you’re looking for something, go out and find it,” Anderson says. “We have so many young, creative farmers out there. Finding the right fit takes a lot of trial and error, but it’s easy to start at the farmers’ markets, see what’s there, what’s growing and start expanding your vision a little more. You just have to be motivated to do it.”

During late winter and early spring advocacy organizations, state ag agencies, non profits and many others make it their business to help farmers meet with buyers face to face through connections events. (Keep an eye on the FoodHub Events page from January through March to find events where you can connect with farmers in your area.)

Late spring and summer are ideal times to meet face-to-face with farmers at market. Some markets even offer early openings for chefs to make it easier to talk business and pick up larger orders. To make it even easier to connect, every FoodHub Member can list the farmers’ markets they buy or sell at on their profile. Find other FoodHub Members at your market by searching the Member Directory by business type and using the Distribution Method filter to see only those Members who sell at markets that you frequent.

Local ingredients do need to be sourced and priced out with some special attention and effort in order to fit into a profitable business model, but doing so can offer your restaurant financial benefits, especially if you pay attention to the following five recommendations for how to make local sourcing pay out…

1.    Start with the easy stuff. Begin the transition to local products by capitalizing on ‘low hanging fruit’, or local products that can be sourced in large quantities for minimal cost. Utilize local suppliers for dairy products, potatoes, onions and other year-round goods. You could also start small: Source local lettuce or kale for a salad or create a special using a new ingredient that you’ve found from a local farmer. Just remember, even if it’s an ingredient that you use otherwise – let’s say sausage for pizza – the fact that it’s LOCAL sausage is important, worth mentioning and can be grounds for a higher price-point.

FoodHub Tip: Have larger quantity needs? Use the FoodHub Marketplace to look for a producer – or group of producers – who can help supply your local sourcing needs. Creating a post is easy and takes only seconds.

2.    Think whole utilization. Buying primal cuts or whole animals and breaking them down yourself provides creative freedom to come up with interesting sauces, braises, charcuterie or other high-value, high-interest menu items using less traditional cuts and even scraps. By efficiently and sustainably utilizing the whole animal, you can stretch your protein dollars a long way while minimizing food waste in the process.

FoodHub Tip: Ready to source your first farm-to-fork meal? Use the ‘Located in …’ filtering option of your next product search to see only those producers that are really close.

3.    Collaborate on direct delivery. One of the most tangible benefits of local food is that it decreases the ‘food miles’ from field to plate, but those miles are only efficient when producers can deliver to multiple buyers in a given area. Spend less on delivery when you arrange for distribution in concert with other restaurants in your area who might be buying similar products .

FoodHub Tip: Find partners in your area by searching on FoodHub for other local buyers. Use the opportunities you find there to work together to solve distribution problems. Just visit the Member Directory, select Buyers from the navigation bar and sort by distance. Other buyers who are close to you will appear in your results.

4.    Establish personal relationships. Kick-start the process of getting to know your grower on FoodHub when you peruse their profile, read their story, view their photo gallery and go over their certification paperwork. Then, find an opportunity to meet with them face-to-face and get down to business. Connection opportunities at events and farmers’ markets build an additional level of quality to the relationship that can increase the predictability and responsiveness of food deliveries. Take the time to get to know them and how their farm works, their production practices and what they’re most proud of. Getting these details can be the starting point for creating cost-saving synergies down the road like forward contracting agreements to keep you stocked with the ingredients you use most often.

FoodHub Tip: Love your grower? Help them tell the rest of the FoodHub community about the good work they do when you write them a recommendation. Just visit their profile, scroll down to the bottom and click [Recommend this user].

5.    Market your connections. It has been shown that customers are willing to pay more for food that they know was produced locally, meat from animals that have been treated humanely, or products that have been grown organically. Taking credit for your conscientious sourcing efforts by marketing your local suppliers will allow you to harvest additional value with premium pricing. Demand has been steadily increasing for locally produced goods for years now, and proper marketing can lead to increases in customer base and revenue. Once you’ve established your relationships, make the most of what you know about your farmer and share that story with your guests. Local food wouldn’t be a hot-button issue if there weren’t demand for it, so show people that you’re a responsive (and responsible) buyer by adding a farmer’s bio to your specials board or listing them with the ingredients on the menu.

FoodHub Tip: Use the About Us section of your producers’ FoodHub profiles to format the information you provide to your customers. It’s right there at the top of the screen!

Top 5 Reasons to Upgrade from FoodHub on Vimeo.

FoodHub is designed to be an all encompassing marketing tool. That includes using your Profile and the Marketplace to spread the word about your products, services and business practices. However, taking advantage of one of FoodHub’s many advertising opportunities puts the cherry on top of your marketing efforts, increases your standing in the community and kick starts connections. But where to start? And how to ROS ads work anyway? What the heck is a Member Spotlight and why do I want one?

Keep reading for answers to those questions and more …

What is a Member Spotlight?
The Member Spotlight gives you arguably the most bang for your advertising buck. When you buy a Member Spotlight you appear in front of the audience of your choice (either buyers or sellers OR both!) not only on their dashboard (that page you land on right when you log in), but your ad ALSO goes out in the Fresh Sheet – FoodHub’s weekly Member newsletter delivered straight to Members’ in-boxes every Tuesday.

What does ROS mean?
ROS stands for Run of Site. When you buy one you get a package of 3 ads that could appear on any one of the hundreds of FoodHub pages at ANY time including the Marketplace – arguably the most-visited section of the site!

Can I buy an ad that stays in one spot?
The short answer is ‘Yes’! These are called ‘banner ads’. We have lots of spots, but we can show you what each one looks like, how big your ad should be and what it will look like once it’s live on the site.

How do I appear at the top of the page when a buyer looks for my product?
Easy: buy a search term. For example, if you buy the word ‘apple’ you’ll always appear at the top of the page. There are three spots available per search term so you and two other Members will share the spotlight. Don’t worry: we rotate the Member who shows up at the top so you’ll have your chance to be king of the mountain. At $4.99/week per search term this is one of the easiest (and cheapest!) ways to appear in front of buyers at the height of the season.

There’s so much information I don’t know where to start! Can you help?
Absolutely. Give us a call (855-FOODHUB) or send us an email (meet@food-hub.org), tell us when you want to start your ad campaign and we’ll work up some specs for you that work with your budget. If you’d like to start crunching some numbers for yourself we have them right here in our Media Kit.

Pssst … I want to save some money on advertising? Can you cut me a break?
Didn’t you know FoodHub is the land of ‘yes’? With an upgraded membership you can save 10% on all advertising. Even better, with a month-to-month Advantage membership, you can save money on advertising, spruce up your profile (click here to see an example of an upgraded profile with all the bells and whistles), cancel your upgrade when the season is done, and then – when you want to be highlighted again NEXT year – all that hard work is saved and appears automatically when you renew at the Advantage or All-Access level.

Do I have to be a Member to advertise on FoodHub?
Nope. As long as you’re a food-related seller or service provider you can advertise on FoodHub. (However, it’ll be WAY easier for folks to connect with you if you’re a Member … and it’s FREE so go ahead and join!)

At FoodHub we’re all about making it easier and more efficient for you to find what you’re looking for. One of the best ways you can save time is by saving your searches. If you’ve found yourself searching for the same product or same kind of producer over and over again, saving your search will bring you one step closer to making the connections you need right when you log in to the site.

It’s easy – run your search, filter your results, and once all your parameters are defined, SAVE THIS SEARCH. Once you’ve saved your search you can come back to it time and time again and get the latest results in seconds.

Check out these five ways you can save searches and save time in the process:

1.    Search by product: There are hundreds of products in FoodHub’s taxonomy. Search by specific variety or general category – you’ll find  storage, sweet, cipollini, or just plain old onions. Product search is at FoodHub’s core and it’s easy – type whatever product you’re looking for in the search bar at the top of the page, then filter your results based on geography, certifications, or other attributes. Tip: Keep your searches broad for more results.

2.    Search by business type: There are lots of different kinds of sellers on FoodHub – farmers, ranchers, dairies, fishermen, breweries, distilleries or other specialty producers. Whether you’re a school searching for your first farm connection or are a food cart looking for a small producer who can cater to your nimble needs, there’s someone worth finding on FoodHub. Go to Member Directory and select the kind of seller you’re looking to find by clicking the relevant Business Types in the left sidebar.

3.    Search for local products already carried by your distributor: Find your distributor in a list when you scroll to the bottom of the navigation bar and click the truck icon under Distribution Method. Once you’ve selected them, your search results will filter to show only those sellers whose products are on their trucks.

4.    Search by what’s in season now: Building a local AND seasonal menu is increasingly valuable in most food service settings. Creating that seasonally-sourced menu is just a few clicks away when you conduct a product search and filter your results by Availability. Just use the check boxes to select the month you’re looking for.

5.    Search for potential partners: Sourcing locally can be challenging, but it’s easier when you work together. Use FoodHub’s search to find other businesses in your area with whom you might collaborate on group buys, overcoming distribution hurdles, or sharing success stories. Just go to the Member Directory, filter by your desired partners’ business types and then sort by distance to find those Members who are close to you.

“We’ve got a really good model that makes it easy for growers and processors to work with us,” said Executive Director John Burt, of Farmers Ending Hunger in Oregon. As part of his job, Burt reaches out to producers year after year, recruiting new growers and facilitating donations with those farmers who have been with the program for several years.

“Making a connection with growers through Food Hub has been an excellent way to extend our reach,” he said.  And, said Burt, the relationships he’s put in place assures the program will be delivering fresh product to food banks throughout the year.

“In some cases we know what’s coming to us,” he said. “For example, we’ll get together with our NorPac vegetable growers and processors in March and they’ll plan on planting and acre of corn or beans or carrots. With other growers we don’t have a formal agreement we just know that it’s coming to us at a certain time of year. It’s a deliberate donation, but we try to adapt year to year.”

From the program’s beginnings, Burt said, farmers have wanted to be part of the state’s solution for providing food for those in need.

“It’s about feeding hungry people,” he said. “When farmers plant they don’t know what the yield is going to be and there’s often extra leftover. If they’ve already satisfied their market they don’t want what’s left to go to waste. If they didn’t give it to us they would probably end up plowing it under.”

Farmers Ending Hunger is one of many organizations harnessing their state’s bounty to bring nutritious food to people who need it. To get involved, connect with one of the food assistance organizations below and add the emergency food assistance badge to your FoodHub profile.

Farmers Ending Hunger – OR
Farmers Ending Hunger started in 2005, a time when 25 percent of Oregon’s populations suffering from food insecurity and eating less than one meal per day. In November 2006 Farmers Ending Hunger rallied five growers who donated green peas, resulting in 173,000 pounds of frozen peas delivered to the Oregon Food Bank. The following year donations increased to more than four times to 800,000 pounds. Each of the past three years has seen donations in excess of two million pounds and the network of farmers and ranchers donating goods has expanded to more than 100. Products primarily donated include potatoes, onions, fresh and frozen vegetables, cattle.

To cover related costs of processing, handling, packaging and transportation Farmers Ending Hunger also developed the “Adopt-an-Acre” program. Through Adopt-an-Acre members of the public and other businesses are invited to donate from $25 for one row (which according to their site is enough to feed 190 families four whole grains for one day) to $500 for two acres (enough to feed 1,000 families of four fresh vegetables for one day).

To get involved in Farmers Ending Hunger by donating a portion of your crop contact Executive Director John Burt at 503-931-9232 or at burtjgb@aol.com.

Rotary First Harvest - WA
This program, based in Washington and organized by Rotary International, connects existing resources to deliver fruits and vegetables into local food banks.  RFH connects growers, packing houses, processors and other groups who sometimes have excess produce available with trucking companies and other transportation providers who have resources available to pick up and deliver that produce to food banks and meal programs across Washington State. RFH also runs Harvest Against Hunger, a partnership with AmeriCorps*VISTA and local food banks that builds effective connections between food banks and their local growers to glean, harvest or collect smaller donations of produce.

To donate your extra produce to Rotary First Harvest contact David Bobanick at (206) 236-0408 or by email at david@firstharvest.org.

Idaho Food Bank - ID
The Idaho Food Bank works with more than 200 agencies throughout Idaho to find, store and transport donations throughout the state. The network also includes more than 30 mobile pantries that serve 4,300 families across 23 counties in typically rural areas that do not have access to emergency food relief. As part of their efforts, the Idaho Food Bank works with state commodity commissions to aggregate fresh produce from area growers. Another project of the Idaho Food Bank, called Beef Counts, works with the Idaho Beef Industry to accept whole animal donations that are processed and distributed to locations throughout the state. Donations of fresh produce from farmers can also be made directly to the Idaho Food Bank. Smaller, less shelf stable donations will be routed to a local food pantry where product can be used immediately. Larger or more shelf stable donations can be picked up and distributed by Idaho Food Bank trucks to facilities throughout the state.

To make a donation contact Vicki Hall 208-577-2700 vhall@idahofoodbank.org

Food Bank of Alaska - AK
In operation since 1979 the Food Bank of Alaska provides food to more than 80,000 people annually. They work with 300 partner agencies to distribute donations from members of the wholesale food industry including distributors, food processor, farmers and ranchers. In addition, Food Bank of Alasks runs a wild game salvage program that allows hunters to donate the excess meat of moose, caribou and deer. With any donation the Food Bank asks that 24 hours notice be given in order to schedule a way for the product to be picked up and distributed.

To donate fresh produce contact Operations Director Larry Smaley at 907-272-3663.

Montana Food Bank Network – MT
Whether it’s one cow or 25,000 pounds of raw wheat, the Montana Food Bank Network finds a way to use producer donations to feed those in need across Montana. Some typical donations we have accepted in the past include 40,000 pounds of potatoes from Manhattan that needed to be moved before the new harvest, 125 lamb from Helena that the rancher couldn’t find a buyer for, and 30,000 pounds of carrots from Chinook which were cosmetically unsaleable.

Contact Director of Operations Brent Weisgram at 1-800-809-4752 x-233 or email bweisgram@mfbn.org to learn more or offer product for donation

California Association of Food Banks – CA
California’s food bank network distributes more than 200 million pounds of food each year. Statewide, 43 food banks provide about 5,000 non-profit agencies with food. These agencies in turn distribute food directly to over 2 million hungry families and individuals. More than 25,000 volunteers support the food bank network. The California Association of Food Banks has been running a program called Farm to Family for the past 10 years that allows the state’s  growers to donate surplus produce to families in need. The Association is able to both provide transportation to direct donations and provide funding for harvesting and packaging when a direct donation is not possible. The program has found the benefits of donating extend not only to hungry people in communities, but also to the farms that include the program in their business plan as the increased planting also means more work for the farm’s employees. New this year, farmers in the state of California who include donations in their harvest are eligible to receive a tax credit. Click here for more information.

For more information on the Farm to Family program contact Ron Clark 510-350-9907 ron@cafoodbanks.org.

To that end, FoodHub is starting a new monthly editorial series that will focus on gathering resources, ideas, best practices, videos and links that will support chefs who have embarked on the journey of authentic local sourcing.

To kick off the series: forward contracting! Technically speaking, a forward contract is a contract between two parties to buy or sell an asset at a specified future time at a price agreed today. In the local food world, forward contracts work much like CSAs (community supported agriculture), with similar benefits, but on a much larger scale.

Great example – you’re a chef who wants to start sourcing the freshest product as close to home as possible. Regardless of what’s going to be on your summer and fall menus, you know you’re going to need onions, carrots and celery, right? If you were to connect with a farmer in your area RIGHT NOW and let them know that you’d be in the market for a regular delivery of those products for as long as they’re coming out of the ground, “your” farmer could:

-          Take your input on the particular varieties you like when s/he’s ordering seed

-          Plant enough rows of each to cover your requested quantity

-          Ensure that you get first shot at the product if quantities are limited for some reason

-          Plan delivery routes around your schedule

-          Spend less time finding buyers and more time in the field, cultivating the best possible product for you!

Another great benefit is that you can often get the very FIRST product available at the start of a season. Being the first restaurant in your area to feature rhubarb tarts made from local rhubarb can generate great buzz among discerning diners. You’re more likely to get that coveted first of the season rhubarb if you’ve planned ahead with the farmer, even more so if you’ve committed to taking the whole field!

Forward contracting can take a variety of forms, from handshake deals to more structured contracts complete with pricing commitments and payment schedules, but the most important feature of forward contracting is to START NOW. Farmers are ordering seed and designing their planting plans this month.

The easiest way to get started? Post to the FoodHub Marketplace. In fact, every chef that posts a forward contracting need on the FoodHub Marketplace this month will get a FREE Member Spotlight ($24.99 value) in January, while supplies last. Your Marketplace post will be featured in the FoodHub Fresh Sheet and additional information about how to do business with you will be mailed to all sellers in FoodHub and posted on all seller dashboards for a week. If you’re trying to find local farmers with whom you can explore forward contracting possibilities, FoodHub will help you do it!

1. Scan the Fresh Sheet (2-3 minutes): Every Tuesday FoodHub buyers, sellers and distributors receive the FoodHub Fresh Sheet – a rundown of what’s on the FoodHub Marketplace this week. If you don’t have time to visit the Marketplace regularly, the Fresh Sheet brings it to you. See a good fit? Just click and connect.

2. Visit your My FoodHub page (2-3 minutes): Log in to FoodHub and you land on your My FoodHub page. This page provides quick access to your most relevant features throughout the site – latest Marketplace and blog posts, access to your profile edit screen, a count of your profile views, one-click access to update your product lists or create a Hot Sheet, and quick links to tutorial videos. Customize the Marketplace view that appears on your My FoodHub page to save even more time. Just click the blue [edit display] link under the “New in the Marketplace” headline to filter post or product types, or to set your geography.

3. Browse the Marketplace (5 minutes): The FoodHub Marketplace is the most dynamic and engaging place to find new connections fast. The Marketplace includes posts for product for sale, product wanted, transportation, services and events and announcements. Taking a couple minutes each morning to see what’s new on each tab in the Marketplace is a quick and easy way to find good deals, potential forward contracting opportunities, cool events and opportunities to share loads. It’s all there.

4. Post in the Marketplace (5-10 minutes): Browsing the Marketplace is a great daily practice, but the best way to get exactly what you want is to post it. Posting in the Marketplace is quick and easy because the site steps you through the process. Your post will be visible for two weeks, unless you’re an All-Access Member and choose to have it automatically re-post. Have an expired post you want to use again? No problem. All of your current and past Marketplace posts are saved in your profile and can be re-posted or copied and revised for a new post.

5. Update your FoodHub Profile (10-20 minutes): As with most social media, you get more when you give a little. Take time to update your own FoodHub profile (find the link in the left sidebar of your My FoodHub page) and it will pay dividends in helping you connect with potential partners that are really a good fit. Be sure to fill out the “About Us “ section, that text is what appears under your name in the FoodHub Member Directory. In the “How to Do Business With Us” section you can explain just that – whether you prefer email or phone communication, best times to make contact, delivery or distribution information and other details you won’t have to explain over the phone! Add a picture or logo and your profile will be a big smile from your business.

6. Forage in the Member Directory (10-20 minutes): FoodHub’s membership spans six states and more than 35 food-related industries. Searching for product or perusing the Member Directory is a great way to get familiar with the breadth and depth of the FoodHub community. Try this: pick a product you need or one that you sell, do a search and sort the results by proximity to see who in your area is dealing in that product – what opportunities are there to work with them? If there’s no one close, what opportunity does that present for you?

Want more ideas for leveraging FoodHub efficiently? Check out our library of How-To videos. Each video is only about two minutes long and provides a bite sized tutorial. Use them when you need help with something specific, or carve out 10 minutes each week to watch a video and try out what you’ve learned – you’ll be a FoodHub power user in no time!

Got other fast ideas for using FoodHub? Call us at 855-FOODHUB or email us at meet@food-hub.org to get in touch!

You can find the Hot Sheet tool by signing in to FoodHub and going to [My FoodHub] and clicking on [My Hot Sheets] in the drop-down menu. You will then see all of your products (if you need help adding products to your profile, watch a tutorial video on how to do it), and from there you can simply check the boxes next to the products you want buyers to know about. When you’re finished, click the blue [Update Hot Sheet] button.

You can send a Hot Sheet to any of your contacts on FoodHub. If you don’t already have contacts in your contact list, adding them is easy. Just visit the profile of a business you want to communicate with and click the [Add to my contact list] button. When you go to send a Hot Sheet, or any other message, the contact will be in your contacts list.

Click [Send Hot Sheet] and the products you want to advertise will automatically appear in the body of the message.  You can fill in pricing information, quantity, availability, delivery schedule, and any other pertinent details. Choose a Hot Sheet recipient from your contact list and click [Send]. The Hot Sheet will be sent to their FoodHub message center and their regular email.

Using Hot Sheets is a great way to personalize connections, and reach out to buyers on an individual basis to increase your chance of positive responses.

Need a little help? Watch a tutorial video on sending Hot Sheets, or get in touch:

FoodHub Help Desk

Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm

meet@food-hub.org

Toll-free: 855-FOODHUB

Satisfied with your search? Save it for later and reuse it to look for Members that fall into the categories or distances you’re looking for. New buyer, sellers, distributors and associates are joining every day so take a couple minutes each morning to see if there’s anyone new to meet in your area! To save a search, click [Save the search] and give it a descriptive title.

Need a little help? Watch a tutorial video on using the Member Directory, or get in touch: meet@food-hub.org or call toll free at 855-FOODHUB.