In Spring 2020, University of Iowa Master’s student Flavia Hauss from Urban and Regional Planning assisted SILT in developing maps to illustrate the distance to likely markets for fresh food producers. We identified these as farmers markets, hospitals, colleges and universities and downtowns of major cities.

These maps answer a common question SILT gets all the time: “Is there a market for that?” We say yes, and we congratulate the many people rebuilding the local food system. We also hope beginning farmers will study these maps when researching markets for SILT farms.

SILT thanks Ms. Hauss and Prof. Steven Spears for their contribution to this project. Sources are provided in pdf version of this publication.

Table food farms located close to their urban markets can have a powerful impact on Iowa’s public health and rural wealth. Fresh, healthy food reduces the risk of chronic illnesses, driving down healthcare costs.

Local farms recirculate wealth in local communities, driving up the quality of life for residents. Unfortunately, land closest to these markets is often valued for development, putting it out of reach for our next generation of farmers. And land farther out adds to transportation costs and is seldom available at the size a food farmer needs.

COVID-19 exposed the fragility of a food system that relies on centralization and scale to feed the world. At the production level, deadly illness swept through meatpacking plants. At the agricultural level, farmers slaughtered hogs they couldn’t process. At the retail level, many grocery stores were empty. And at the community level, more people went hungry than ever.

We have an opportunity to prepare for the next challenge now. America is in the middle of an historic transfer of land ownership. We know Iowa’s soils can feed nearly 200 people per acre per growing season their minimum daily requirement of fruits and vegetables. We know managed livestock builds soil and sequesters carbon. And local and organic foods have become more profitable than ever for producers. These factors allow us to diversify our agriculture in a way we haven’t seen in 70 years, building a more resilient economy while feeding our people.

By identifying potential markets and cost of transportation for Iowa’s food farmers, this report gives farmers a way to consider the reduced risk of growing new food crops. If current or beginning farmers decide to grow table food, we can expect their decision to increase the supply of fresh food and decrease obesity and related disease indices while keeping the wealth generated circulating in local communities. It also illustrates to policymakers the potential for and necessity of supporting the reconstruction of local food systems.

Dedicating land closest to our urban areas to food farming is an important first step toward rebuilding the infrastructure Iowa’s food farmers need to be competitive. To know the numbers, we need an updated study of the economic and environmental impact of local food production in Iowa. To see it in action, we need policies that support landowners who want to preserve their land as permanent table food farms close to metro areas.

• There are 463 potential local foods markets across Iowa’s 99 counties not including grocery stores, K-12 schools and nursing homes.
• Transportation expenses drop dramatically when farms are located 5 miles from their markets compared to 30 miles or more.5
• There are farmer’s markets within a 30-minute drive for most retail farms. Such markets help new farm branding. The high labor and time of managing a market stall causes many to transition to a subscription (Community Supported Agriculture) or local wholesale model once a farm matures.
• Hospitals and other healthcare facilities are the most likely potential wholesale markets for Iowa’s food farmers based on distance. These may require higher safety standards or more processing prior to delivery.
• Colleges and universities provide strong markets for local foods, providing a lower risk, higher return for farmers operating within a 30-mile radius.

These markets require more value-added processing so locally-grown fruits and vegetables can be available throughout the school year.

1. Support policies that reward landowners, developers, and municipalities for preserving farms under housing pressure.

This will provide a wider variety of career opportunities to beginning farmers who want to stay and raise their families in Iowa.

2. Include land trust agri-communities in urban planning and economic development efforts.

Protected farms located in new residential developments provide a 35% to 40% premium to the developer and affordable land ownership to the farmer. City and county planners can offer incentives for such projects.

3. Invest in current research on the economic, environmental, and social impacts of local food production in Iowa.

How much wealthier would our small towns be if more of our food dollars stayed in Iowa? Could they support local butchers, small-town “greengrocers,” farm-to-market distribution, value-added processing, and more? Could they supplement and diversify the commodity agriculture we have now, making our agricultural economy more resilient to the ups and downs of policy and the market? How much would they increase property values and revenue streams for local schools and parks, increasing the quality of life and attracting more skilled workers to Iowa? Updated research could tell us more.

4. Level the playing field.

Local farmers find themselves competing with national distributors for wholesale markets in Iowa — hospitals, schools, grocery chains, government offices. International monopolies can offer deep discounts that undercut local producers. 

These low prices don’t account for the true costs of production and do nothing to contribute to the economic, social, or environmental health of the community that is purchasing the food. Local producers can compete in price and quality when the true cost of food and nutrition is calculated, and local food hubs make it easier for farmers to get their products to market.

The Sustainable Iowa Land Trust (SILT) is Iowa’s only land trust dedicated solely to preserving land for nature-friendly food farms. SILT has embarked on a Circle Our Cities campaign to surround 10 major metro areas with 10 permanent sustainable food farms in 10 years.