"The Time is Now" Q&A Board by

tsupros1 — 2026-10-07 21:17:52 UTC

TEST: I am wondering when the LFPA Mi Evaluation began

tsupros1 — 2026-10-07 21:23:02 UTC

TEST: How many national food hub survey's have there been?

Refugees

2026-10-08 13:15:02 UTC

When we begin to resettle refugees again (I’m choosing to assume we will do this again), I’d love to look at how we could resettle those who may have been farmers in their home country to a community where they can have a small farm business.

2026-10-08 13:16:44 UTC

Are the two LFPA studies published? If so, can you share? Also, is there any connection between the MSU LFPA Impact Report and the one produced by the Wallace Center?

Economic development

2026-10-08 13:18:25 UTC

We know that “keeping food in the economy from seed to by-product” is a smart approach. Would be great to involve economic development teams statewide to bring them into the local food system concepts and strategize about how to grow food processing, farmer support, etc.

2026-10-08 13:19:49 UTC

Is there any movement to get ten cents as part of the farm bill? It took about 10 years to build momentum to get Double Up Food Bucks as part of the farm bill, but perhaps we can use their play book to move this to a federal level.

Clarity on the match funding

2026-10-08 13:32:39 UTC

Where did the funds come from for the incentive?

(Re)building trust with farmers

2026-10-08 13:33:08 UTC

I was talking with someone at a farmer org yesterday who noted that the big swings in funding (like loss of LFPA and various USDA programs funding farm improvements & TA) and markets (changes in institutional purchases) have made farmers more reluctant to grow for those markets and more conservative in their crop planning, which could have major supply impacts. I am curious if this was experienced in MI with the 10 Cents program and if there are lessons learned there from your efforts to reinstate that program.

Food Hub

2026-10-08 13:41:32 UTC

How do we define a food hub here?

A certain farm size is needed for these programs

2026-10-08 13:45:28 UTC

We need to know where the farms are and their sizes in order to know if they can participate in these types of programs. Then we can help them grow to sustainable size for supplying wholesale.

Market development

2026-10-08 13:51:37 UTC

How do we grow the market demand for local foods, especially in rural areas / outside of high-population urban centers? Ample funding for producers and infrastructure isn't sustainable in the long run without established market demand and ongoing purchasing.

Only if…

2026-10-08 14:03:45 UTC

The state-level agency /cooperator is actually cooperative and sees the local food system as worthy of attention and investment. I live in a place that does not have that kind of state leadership and it’s really holding us back. This highlights the importance of state-level advocacy and - more - electing state officials who value local food systems.

You can type here!

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 14:05:46 UTC

Enter your info here

A more formal state level hub partnership would be good. It is a very informal network and that means that participation varies. Is there any effort to create a network that is funded?

2026-10-08 14:06:03 UTC

What are examples of collective social infrastructure?

2026-10-08 14:06:56 UTC

Relationships

2026-10-08 14:08:01 UTC

Farmers and buyers want to be able to meet, connect, socialize, and interact in person and online. Those opportunities for face time and tools and digital infrastructure for online comms and deal making should be encouraged.

2026-10-08 14:08:06 UTC

More webinars that touch on these subjects so that we can connect and glean ideas from other states.

Keep it going!

2026-10-08 14:08:06 UTC

I would love regular meetings where we can continue learning from one another. It is extremely helpful to hear what is happening in other states and I'd love to learn more to be able to uplift Pennsylvania.

Distribution is also an issue for all hubs

2026-10-08 14:08:18 UTC

2026-10-08 14:08:27 UTC

State-specific (or even region-specific) opportunities to connect would be great

Valuing the intangible

2026-10-08 14:08:29 UTC

I love this framing of “collective social infrastructure” and I’m a big believer in it. However making the case for it, and actually securing funding for relational work is extremely tough. Would love to see MSU do a deep dive study on this - to help us demonstrate the value of collaboration infrastructure

Connect with state level partners in CA to gather their LFPA info. As you may know the state is covering the cost but for much less and a year. We need to better understand what happened across CA to inform other broader funders for permanent funding. Also resourcing at the local level as we need the middle chain in addition to the value chain.

2026-10-08 14:08:30 UTC

2026-10-08 14:08:50 UTC

I'd like a better definition of food hubs and who actually is one and qualifies for opportunities. The term is being used way to generally at this time.

keep sharing stories!

2026-10-08 14:08:55 UTC

It really matters to producers that our food is more broadly available to all eaters, not just those that can afford the often more expensive local food. When subsidies are available (LFPA, LFA, LINK Match, etc), we get paid AND we broaden that population of people that are eating our healthy, nourishing food. My heart lifted when this was shared and accentuated in this webinar.

To Build momentum first we have to have a group of those who would like to be apart of the mission.Without a vision the people perish.So bring your love and passion and your gift to the table

2026-10-08 14:09:18 UTC

2026-10-08 14:09:22 UTC

There is a desire for tangible results (i.e. funds leveraged, new institutions, etc) but the work of building social infrastructure is it's own goal that requires ongoing support - what are models of ways to support this infrastructure we can adapt locally? How do we support and fund this work?

2026-10-08 14:09:31 UTC

When people are buying their food from local farmers and producers it helps build those bridging ties we desperately need right now. Detroit Public Schools buys some local food and the farmers love knowing some of what they grow is going to their kids and their friends.

So important

2026-10-08 14:09:33 UTC

It would be important to build a collective of food distributors, farmers, buyers, everyone when it comes to food to understand and engage with each other.

We are beginning to think about hosting an annual State of the Food System event for our region.... for the community and our partners to see what has changed over time. Would be cool to do at a state level.

2026-10-08 14:10:00 UTC

Food System Investment - for what and from whom specifically

2026-10-08 14:10:50 UTC

when we think about "food systems investment," can we think more specifically about the types of investment needed, and the types of investors needed?

how do we save access to the padlet? I'd like to read through these comments later when I have more time to digest.

2026-10-08 14:10:59 UTC

Workforce Development -Food access

2026-10-08 14:10:59 UTC

I'm working with a youth workforce development organization & it has brought some positive changes. But there needs to be clear & accessible job or career development in agriculture & environmental sciences outside of college/universities, especially with food processing & procurement with local & State investments

Resource for connecting buyers and farmers

tsupros1 — 2026-10-08 14:11:49 UTC

Hello! Dr. Warsaw just mentioned making the connection if a buyer is looking for a local farmer. In Michigan, we have developed a Michigan Farm to Program Directory to help make these connections! Just wanted to share in case anyone is interested: https://mdoe.state.mi.us/GEMS/Public/FTPLandingPage.aspx

Hub-to-Hub Networks

2026-10-08 14:11:57 UTC

Hey, wouldn't that be great?

2026-10-08 14:13:44 UTC

Building coordination between producers, food hubs, buyers, and other orgs takes a tremendous amount of time and capacity. We are temporarily supporting these efforts from the Extension side but I am very concerned about sustaining this coordination upon the conclusion of our current RFSI funding, especially for our more rural partners that are mostly navigating this work as individuals rather than formal organizations (none exist locally). Our attempts right now is finding ways to illustrate to the broader public how essential coordination is but it is a slow process.

In WV, we created what we call “Ag Action Network” 10 years ago and has worked extremely well, but this model is more of a hyper-local (3-5 county area) network of farmers, producers, service providers, food systems experts, etc. that we come together 2-4 times annually to network, share resources and knowledge, bring trainings to the table, and collaborate on various opportunities to improve our local food system. We listen, we learn, we analyze, and then tackle our biggest needs as a whole.

2026-10-08 14:39:44 UTC

LFPA - Michigan Information Sheets

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 15:49:15 UTC

You can find the Michigan LPFA data through Michigan Department of Education or MSU Center for Regional Food Systems.

https://www.canr.msu.edu/resources/michigan-local-food-purchase-assistance-program-impact-information-sheets

10 Cents a Meal - Evaluation

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 15:50:24 UTC

https://www.canr.msu.edu/10-cents-a-meal/

National Food Hub Survey- Evaluation Report

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 15:53:07 UTC

LFPA - National Evaluation Report

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 15:54:06 UTC

Local Food Impact Calculator

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:00:04 UTC

Find a farmer (Michigan)

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:03:19 UTC

Michigan Department of Education's Farm to Program Directory

https://mdoe.state.mi.us/GEMS/Public/FTPLandingPage.aspx

Michigan Good Food Charter

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:05:12 UTC

National Community of Practice for Statewide and Regional Food Systems Plans

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:06:14 UTC

California - Building a Regional Food System

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:07:00 UTC

Economic impacts of food hubs article

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:08:09 UTC

Public bidding process more accessible to farms (Massachusetts)

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:09:42 UTC

Chess game for shared use kitchens

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:12:58 UTC

UC Davis created a chess game for shared use kitchens - contact Tara Sweeney at rzubia@ucdavis for more info.

Institutional Anchors example

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:13:58 UTC

The Healthcare Anchor Network

https://healthcareanchor.network

Aha moment

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:15:37 UTC

One person shared an AHA moment - the economic development impacts of emergency food system when buying local

The Farm Stop model

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:16:19 UTC

Food Club model

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-08 16:16:54 UTC

National Food Hub Survey Findings

rahrigj1 — 2026-10-09 20:24:24 UTC