It is well known that Lexington carries a great deal of local pride. As I tell folks from where I grew up in South Carolina, if you do not like basketball in Lexington, you learn to pretend — or risk getting kicked out.
There is a lot to love about Lexington from a local-food perspective. More and more restaurants are taking pride in providing local, fresh ingredients, grown at farms within a short drive. With this in mind, John-Mark Hack and others are seeking to promote a Local Food Association (LFA) within Kentucky. This association aims to bring more awareness to local food production and all those involved.
Hack is a partner of Marksbury Farm. They are a humane meat-production facility, aimed at producing the best product for their consumers, even if it means extra work. It is with these ethics that the LFA is gaining its footing.
Currently, the association is seeking its “501c-6 IRS certification as a nonprofit trade association” and is in partnership with the Land and Food Foundation, which is pursuing a 501c-3 certification. The two organizations define local food as “food sustainably produced, processed, distributed and consumed within a 100-mile radius.” Collectively, they hope to influence and inspire local food conditions in four main ways.
First, the association hopes to help the local food movement on a government level. This means that when policies are brought about at a local, state or federal level, our area will have someone to represent “food citizens” or those involved with the LFA, “including individuals, businesses, nonprofits, faith communities and other groups,” Hack said. However, it is not intended to be an “us and them” designation. Hack explained that the LFA believes in “equipping food citizens to be active and influential players within the political and public policy domains.” Should one wish to participate in the association, they will not only be given the tools necessary to affect real change, but also provided a community within which to gain different perspectives on the many facets of local food production, as well as having support from similarly minded groups and individuals.
Second, the LFA will set up its own certification standards. This means that if a product is certified by the LFA, the consumer can be assured of the quality of the product. Hack said that “certification criteria will address point of origin, sustainable production, animal welfare, labor standards, processing and distribution.”
Third, the LFA will equip members of the association through education. Awareness and education are the two largest weapons in the arsenal of local food promotion. Beyond educational opportunities, the LFA hopes to help in professional development as well. This is done to not only aide the numbers of members in the association but also to “further enhance the professionalization of the local food movement.”
The fourth way LFA will seek to enhance the local food movement is by working with various organizations that have shown interest in local food. Hack explained the hope that “professionals with experience in agricultural production, supply chain management, land-use planning, market development and public relations will engage with local food citizens to identify and implement the most appropriate of best practices for local food community development accumulated from throughout the world.” Those who are on a professional level or who are perhaps more experienced in a given field will be granted opportunity to engage their local food interest by partnering with those involved with the association. It is a meeting of the minds, a sharing of knowledge for the betterment of the big picture.
The LFA will not simply be Kentucky-based. Plans also call for a presence in Washington, D.C., with membership eventually stretching worldwide. Right now, they are focused on creating a board, and gaining memberships and necessary certifications before the “soft” launch slated for after the election. After that, there will be more finalizations of board members as well as operations being set up for their “hard” launch after the presidential inauguration.
Another amazing thing about this exciting movement is that it is gearing up right over in Garrard County. From novices to know-it-alls, there is a place for everyone to come, learn and act. It is, if you’ll excuse the cheesy meta-phor, a moment ripe for the picking.