I recently received some exciting information about a great new way to receive local foods close to home. A member of the CitySprout team contacted me and gave me the rundown of their mission and how they hope to rebuild the relationship between communities and the people who produce food within it. They have created an online social marketplace that allows communities to connect directly with their surrounding small farms and local food producers and gain access to fresh, healthy, local food.
Their idea of bringing local food and local people together also helps to cut down on the environmental impact of the current food distribution model. By connecting the farmers with consumers directly, CitySprout has helped cut costs by allowing the farmers to set a minimum order number for each deal. Once the minimum amount of orders has been met, the deal will be delivered at a community pick-up site for all those who purchased the deal.
After a successful trial launch in cities including Boston, MA, Brooklyn, NY and even Manhattan, CitySprout looked to expand their program with the idea of spreading nationally in the coming years. Austin has been selected as the first city due to our ideal location and year-round growing season, as well as our highly involved population with the local food movement.
CitySprout has already spoken to several employers, homeowner associations, places of worship, small farms and local producers. All of them have shown a keen interest in the program and are excited about this idea. I was drawn to this idea since I am a vegan and can't quite commit to a weekly CSA box just yet. The idea that I can find the perfect deal for me and then meet up in a mutal spot with other customers and snag a box of fresh and local veggies was exciting to me.
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