Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird says her inaugural Local Food Challenge was a big success. The challenge encouraged businesses, schools, restaurants and institutions to source food from local producers.
Twenty-one organizations placed 289 orders with 38 regional farmers and suppliers, spending $595,009 on local food products in the program that ran from July through October. “When we eat local food, we not only taste the difference, we make a real difference,” Gaylor Baird says.
“The Mayor’s Local Food Challenge helps build a vibrant food future that benefits our environment and economy, while embracing the proud Nebraska tradition of knowing and celebrating where our food comes from.”
The City worked with Lone Tree Foods of Lincoln and Robinette Farms of Martell to connect participants with high-quality food produced within a 250-mile radius of Lincoln. They chose program options that suited their needs, and earned recognition based on the number of local food orders placed during the 18-week program.
Kim Morrow, Chief Sustainability Officer for the City of Lincoln, says despite being located in one of the nation’s top agricultural states, Lincoln imports 90-percent of it’s food, the equivalent of about 1.6 million pounds daily.
That has resulted in more than $1.1 billion leaving the region annually. “If every Lincoln resident spent $5 a week on food produced locally, it would generate $91 million annually for regional farms and food businesses,” Morrow says.
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