USDA’s Economic Research Service along with the Farm Foundation will be holding a conference on emerging research and policy issues surrounding local food systems. Locally grown food is the fastest growing segment of U.S. agriculture and has many developing issues associated with it. The conference will be held in the Waugh Auditorium in Washington DC. According to ERS, the goals of the conference are:
- Describe the size and scope of local food systems and discuss how the performance of local food markets is evaluated;
- Critically examine measures of local food market performance, including price and product availability, impacts on rural economic development, environmental consequences and sustainability, food safety and quality, and social welfare issues;
- Assess the economics of local foods by discussing supply and demand issues related to local food systems, as well as marketing considerations involved in the industry;
- Explore the range of current Government involvement in local food systems, including existing programs that foster local food distribution at the Federal, State, and local levels, potential unintended consequences arising from public sector involvement, and barriers to growth in local food systems;
- Examine the appropriate role for future Government involvement in local food systems
For more details on the conference, click here.
Posted: 06/03/09
