The local food movement touts the freshness and flavors of small farms and area producers of meats, cheese, honey and more as a way to reconnect to what food used to be -- tasty, delicious and part of the social fabric of a community.
"Though some of the health benefits of locally grown food have yet to be proved," says Christine Parker, economic and community development educator for Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service Porter County, "buying locally grown food definitely keeps money in the community."
And now, Purdue University has created the Indiana Flavor program.
"There seemed to be a need for community leaders to create an environment in which a local food program could grow," says Scott Hutcheson, Assistant Program Leader for Economic and Community Development with Purdue Extension and Senior Associate with Purdue Center for Regional Development (PCRD), who helped develop Indiana Flavor.
According to PCRD's website, the rapidly growing interest in local foods in many Indiana communities includes an increased number of producers growing specialty crops; an increased demand from consumers for local food products; increased opportunities for the procurement of local foods from institutions such as school corporations, universities, and hospitals; and a surge of entrepreneurs engaging in new food-related ventures.
Hutcheson sees Indiana as being fortunate because the state has a lot of food producers.
"In Northwest Indiana, there are many interesting producers like County Line Orchards," says Hutcheson, who co-authored, with Christine Barbour, "Home Grown Indiana: A Food Lover's Guide to Good Eating in the Hoosier State" (Quarry Books). "And no rural community is further than 30 or 40 miles from an urban center so that helps get food to the market quickly."
Part of PCRD's commitment means providing materials and examples of community-based food network projects.
In Porter County, Parker helps educate people looking to directly market their food either through farmer's markets or restaurants. She also sends out a monthly newsletter on the subject. She says that over the years there's been a developing interest by local chefs to work with small vendors but there are also difficulties too.
"Chefs need consistent products but there are some that are doing that," she says noting that Bistro 157 in Valparaiso and Marilyn's Bakery in Hobart are two of several restaurants who use local goods.
And though chains don't necessarily use local food products, Parker says that individual grocery stores have shown themselves to be willing to work with local accounts.
Hutcheson is keen on Lake and Porter counties.
"Their proximity to Chicago is significant as Chicago chefs are looking across the border for local foods," he says noting that recently Chicago chefs were looking for ramps and turned to Hoosiers to get them. "Indiana Flavor is about connecting people -- it's a social networking model."
