From 2007 to 2010, the Intervale Food Hub grew from a research project to a food hub with 21 participating farms, grossing $280,000 in total and returning 70 percent to participating farmers. The food hub provides the infrastructure needed to aggregate produce from local farms and distribute it to the community.
With the help of a 2007 SARE grant, the Intervale Food Hub was able to launch a profitable business. This report combines information gathered from focus groups that took place throughout the SARE grant to evaluate how the hub was developed. It highlights the aspects of the development of the Intervale Food Hub that were critical to its success, and lists recommendations for the food hub going forward. The evaluation was created both for the purposes of the Intervale Food Hub and for those interested in replicating this model elsewhere.
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This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture through the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.