100km Foods: Making Local Food Convenient
In the connection between farmers and restauranteurs, the missing link is often distribution. 100Km Foods aims to be the solution.
The Trouble with Local Food on Menus
Let’s keep it real. We all want to see more local food on our menus. The problem is that asking farmers to drive into the city to deliver their goods (often in low volume to several stops) isn’t always easy or fair.
Something can pop up on the farm so the farmer is needed, weather can throw off plans and frankly, it can be economically and environmentally unsustainable.
This was what Grace and Paul from 100km Foods noticed early on. Not only did they want to fix the problem, but they wanted to be the solution. Enter stage left, a distribution channel that puts mid-to-small-range farming as a priority.
Making Things Convenient
When Grace and Paul first started 100km Foods, they knew that in order for local food to be a priority for restaurants, it had to be convenient. They had moved across Toronto several times and each time would suss out the best of their neighbourhood: an organic butcher, farmers’ market, fairtrade coffee…you get it. They wanted to be the connection piece for all these food producers to work together and be successful, particularly beyond foot traffic.
For restauranteurs, that meant getting local ingredients that weren’t just on time but also in good condition AND traceable (meaning they knew where the food was coming from). It also meant getting the food from farm to restaurant in under 24 hours in most cases.
For farmers, getting their goods to restaurants and maintaining a sustainable relationship meant not having to leave the farm to drive into the city themselves and getting to set their own prices.
So how did Grace, Paul and the whole team at 100km Foods make it work? First, they built relationships with local producers within a 100km radius of the GTA.
From day one, they set out to build a local food infrastructure that was fair to all partners so that meant allowing farmers to set their own prices and marking up from there so restaurants could afford the ingredients they wanted to see on their menus.
Restauranteurs can now log onto 100km Foods online portal and select the ingredients they need for their upcoming menu. Except for a couple of specialty items, everything is local. Better yet? You can see what farm it’s coming from and what else they grow or produce.
Because of this, 100km Foods has become the third leg of the stool in making local food convenient, available and yeah, delicious.
Flipping the Script on Local
When the food distribution model began to take form, Grace notes, “we were warned not to put our suppliers and customers in the same room and to keep them anonymous. We ignored that. In fact, we did the opposite,” she laughs.
It’s worked out too! 100km Foods not only showcases who their farmers are on their website, they also get them together with restauranteurs as much as possible. That means hosting Meet and Greets for people to connect, farm tours and more. “We essentially get both sides together as often as possible.”
What has this meant for the local food supply chain? A whole lot as it turns out. In many cases, farmers are able to better supply restaurants because they can talk and understand what the needs of chefs are in the restaurant. Sometimes they even start growing new things they weren’t before, as was the case with one of 100km’s most popular items: the espelette pepper.
For restauranteurs, it’s meant greater appreciation for what they’re serving. In many cases, food waste has decreased significantly after chefs began to understand the work that goes into producing foods and there’s been a greater understanding of the cost of food.
“Traditionally, mid-range farmers have been excluded from supply chains,” says Grace. “There’s no place for those farmers in the middle. It hasn’t been profitable.” We think it’s safe to say, 100km Foods is changing that. In fact, today they are North America’s third-largest local food hub!
Get to Know Them
Are you a restauranteur or farmer who thinks you might like to get involved? We’ve got a few ways you can connect!
First, 100km Foods is hosting a Meet and Greet this June 26th. More details will be announced soon so save that date.
Second, check out their website! If you’re a restauranteur, you can create an account and even personally in the GTA, you can get your groceries delivered!
Cheers to more local food everywhere!