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Local Food System Glossary the Following Are Common Terms Used When Describing Sustainable Local Food Systems

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Local Food System Glossary the Following Are Common Terms Used When Describing Sustainable Local Food Systems Local Food System Glossary The following are common terms used when describing sustainable local food systems. 100-mile diet - A selection of food products limited to items that are produced within a 100-mile radius of where the consumer lives. Carbon footprint - The total amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere by a product during its lifetime or generated in support of the activity of a human. CAFO - A concentrated animal feeding operation. The EPA has definitions that include the number of animals that can be located in a CAFO. Cage-free - While there is no USDA definition, cage free eggs typically is used to describe eggs that come from birds that are not confined to cages 24 hours a day. Census of Agriculture - The census of U.S. agriculture, conducted by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, is based on a 5-year cycle of data collection for years ending in 2 and 7. Results for the most recent agricultural census, 2007, were released in February 2009 and updated in December 2009. Certified Humane - The Certified Humane Raised & Handled Label is a consumer certification and labeling program. When you see the Certified Humane Raised & Handled label it means that an egg, dairy, meat or poultry product has been produced with the welfare of the farm animal in mind. Food products that carry the label are certified to have come from facilities that meet precise, objective standards for farm animal treatment. Certified Naturally Grown - A grassroots alternative to the USDA's National Organic Program meant primarily for small farmers distributing through local channels - farmer's markets, roadside stands, local restaurants, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs and small local grocery stores. The standards and growing requirements are no less strict than the USDA National Organic Program rules. The primary difference between Certified Naturally Grown and the USDA Organic program is cost to farmers and paperwork requirements. Certified Organic - The United States Department of Agriculture requires that anyone who produces processes or handles organic agricultural products must be certified by a USDA-accredited certifier in order to sell, label or represent their products as "organic." To become certified, an organic producer, processor or handler must develop, implement and maintain an organic system plan. Chemical Free - Crops (including produce and animal feed) grown entirely without the use of chemicals. Civic Agriculture - The trend towards locally based agriculture and food production that is tightly linked to a community's social and economic development. Community Garden - A plot of land that is gardened by a group of people to produce fruits, vegetables and/or flowers. These plots can also be home to chicken keeping for 1 egg production. Community gardens exist in both urban and rural settings, and many are located on vacant lots, at schools or community centers, or on donated land. Food may be grown communally, or families may have individual garden plots or beds. Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) - A system of direct marketing in which consumers "invest" in a farm for the growing season, and in return receive a weekly or monthly payout of fruits and vegetables. Many CSA's also include meats, cheeses, or value added products in addition to fresh crops. Marketing arrangement in which members purchase shares of a farmer’s expected yield before planting. Each week during the growing season the farmer delivers each member’s weekly share of food to predetermined locations or packs the share for the members to pick up at the farm. (Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues) Conventional Agriculture - Typically used to describe a resource intensive agricultural system, relying heavily on machinery and chemicals to raise crops and livestock. Cooperative - A cooperative is a business and is generally distinguished from other types of businesses by its governance and profit distribution. Consumer cooperatives are businesses owned and run by the customers themselves with the goal being improved service rather than improved profits. Members govern the cooperative, usually through a democratic process. Profits generated by the cooperative are returned to the members based upon their use of the cooperative's services. Agricultural cooperatives involve the pooling of resources by multiple individuals in order to accomplish a shared goal. This often includes the sharing of labor, machinery, and/or land with the objective of increasing positive outcomes for all involved. Customwork - Services that farm operators provide for others such as planting, plowing, spraying, and harvesting. Direct Marketing - The goal is to sell to the end consumer (an individual, a restaurant, grocer or institution) without using a distributor. Typical direct marketing strategies include on-farm sales, farm stands, U-picks, Internet/mail-order sales, farmers market, or Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Direct-to-Consumer Marketing - Local food marketing arrangement in which producers sell agricultural products directly to the final consumers, such as sales to consumers through farmers’ markets, CSAs or farm stands. Direct-to-Retail/Foodservice Marketing - Local food marketing arrangement in which producers sell agricultural products directly to the final sellers, such as sales to restaurants, supermarkets, or institutions, including schools and hospitals. Fair trade - producers or organizations that supply Fair trade products are inspected and certified by FLO (Fair trade Labeling Organizations International). This movement advocates higher social, environmental, and economic standards for producers in developing countries. 2 Farmers’ Market - Marketing outlet at which farmers sell agricultural products to individual customers at a temporary or permanent location on a periodic and recurring basis during the local growing season or during the time when they have products available, which might be all year. Farm to School - Connecting schools and local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, providing agriculture, health and nutrition education opportunities, and supporting local and regional farmers. Collaborative projects that connect schools and local farms to serve locally grown, healthy foods in K-12 school settings, improve student nutrition, educate students about food and health, and support local and regional farmers. (Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues) Fiscal Year - Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30 and are named after the year in which they end. Food Alliance Certified - The Food Alliance is a nonprofit organization that certifies farms and ranches and food handlers (including packers, processors and distributors) for sustainable agricultural and business practices. Food Deserts - A geographic area with no or distant grocery stores. Often, food deserts have an imbalance of food choices meaning fast food, convenience stores, and liquor stores. Food miles - The distance food travels from its place of production to the place where it is consumed. The distance a food product travels from the place of production to the location what it is sold for final consumption. (Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues) Food Policy Council - A Food Policy Council brings together citizens and officials to provide a comprehensive examination of a local food system. According to the Drake Ag Law Center this non-partisan form of civic engagement brings together a diverse group of food system stakeholders to develop local food and Ag policy recommendations. Councils can be sanctioned through government action or formed through a grassroots effort. Food Provenance - The identifiable geographical origin and associated production methods and traditions of a food. Food Security - Food security for a household means access by all members at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life. Food security includes at a minimum (1) the ready availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods, and (2) an assured ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways (that is, without resorting to emergency food supplies, scavenging, stealing, or other coping strategies). USDA 3 Foodshed - A defined area from which food is grown, processed, purchased, and consumed. The local food movement aims to bring the foodshed closer to home, ranging from a local community to a larger multi-state region. Free-range - A method of farming/ranching in which livestock are allowed to "roam freely," instead of being confined to a feeding stall or cage. The term is most commonly associated with but not limited to poultry. Similar terms include "cage free," "humanely raised," and "pastured livestock." Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) - An organism that has had its genetic material altered through genetic engineering. In relation to food and agriculture, this would include plants, seeds, and livestock that have been genetically engineered in a lab to increase yields, pest resistance, or enhance desired traits. GMO's are a major concern to communities trying to preserve native seeds and/or traditional practices. Grass-fed - A term to describe livestock that forage freely on grass and legume pastures, rather than being fed corn and grains in confined feedlots. Grass Finished - Animals considered “grass finished” are fed only grass during the period preceding processing. This is distinguished from the industry standard of feeding
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