RONAN — Local farmers, co-op agencies,

grocery stores and non-profit groups gathered at the Ronan

Performing Arts Center last Wednesday for an evening with Ken

Meter, a farm and food system analyst from the Crossroads Resource

Center in Minnesota.

Meter recently completed a local farm

and food economy study that analyzed the current and historical

states of food and agriculture in Flathead, Lake, Missoula, Ravalli

and Sanders counties. With that information as an economic base,

Meter presented his four-part vision for local food economics that

combined a community’s health, wealth, connections and its capacity

to handle food safely.

Food has an enormous preventative

health value, he said. However, when it becomes only about the

bottom line, it can also be very dangerous to consumers.

“You can connect overweight kids in our

society today with the oil crisis in 1973,” Meter said.

In 1973, America had produced an

abundance of corn and could not sell it. So, the surplus was used

to create high fructose corn syrup. Now, the highly-processed

sweetener is a staple ingredient to many of the foods we see in

grocery stores and some experts say it has contributed to the

rising obesity levels nationwide, showing how incredibly

far-reaching and complex the issue of agricultural economics can

become.

“We have to think of food in a very

different way than we currently do,” Meter said. “Any number of

crises could break down the current chain of supply, but you cannot

outsource a strong local food economy.”

What it boils down to, Meter said, is

creating a more resilient future. A future where local producers

are rewarded for providing healthy, affordable food for their

communities.

According to the study, 73 percent of

Western Montana’s farmers and ranchers reported net losses in 2007.

Moreover, western Montana farmers lose approximately $31 million

each year and spend nearly $80 million buying from suppliers

outside of the region. While Western Montana’s farmers are losing

money, Montana consumers are spending approximately $749 million

buying food each year, $680 million of which is spent on food from

outside the region.

“If Western Montana consumers purchased

only 15 percent of the food they needed for home use directly from

local farmers, this would produce $66 million of new wealth in the

region,” Meter said.

In a region where farmers today earn

$76 million less per year than they did in 1969, this could really

turn the economy around on a local scale. However, many local

producers have already given up, or are now turn to alternative

revenue to sustain their farming income.

“The current food system takes the

wealth out of our communities,” Meter said. “Local foods may be the

best path toward economic recovery... [a key to] bringing the whole

country back on its feet.”

According to Meter, farmers make only

20 percent of the food dollar and the middle-man and marketing

entities account for the remaining 80 percent.

Greg Herts, co-owner of the Polson

Super 1 grocery store contributed to the group discussion that

followed Meter’s presentation. He said he’s never had a quality

issue when dealing with local growers, but getting a consistent

quantity has been problematic in the past.

In an area with a short growing season

and often unpredictable weather patterns, it can be difficult for

small farms to generate a steady yield, Dave Prather, a

representative from the Western Montana Growers’ Cooperative said.

However, the co-op model brings strength in numbers and added

certainty to the equation.

Adding to the economic and agricultural

potential of this area is the Mission Mountain Food Enterprise

Center in Ronan. The center provides a USDA, FDA and Montana

organic-certified food packaging and processing plant at the

doorstep of Mission Valley growers. The facility can be rented by a

business owner for an hourly, daily or monthly fee. With a strong

base of technical assistance, capital and marketing resources, MMFE

and the Lake County Community Development Corporation hope to bring

new individuals and small businesses to the area, create local jobs

and compete in diverse, global markets.

“Despite the gloomy picture of our

overall farm economy there are reasons for optimism,” Karl Sutton,

program coordinator at the Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center

said. “If there was clear planning and investment in our region’s

farm and food infrastructure, our agricultural economies could

stimulate economic recovery.”

Meter’s numbers indicate that in 2007,

489 farms sold $2 million of food directly to local consumers. This

represents a 22 percent increase since 2002. Statistically, direct

sales represent only 1.4 percent of the region’s farm product

sales. Yet, direct sales in Western Montana are 3.5 times the

national average. And, Western Montana has the only fruit and

vegetable marketing and distribution cooperative in the state as

well as the only value-added fruit, vegetable and meat community

food processing facility (MMFE).

“His presentation showed the crowd how

we can change our economy by promoting local food consumption,”

attendee Jason Moore said.

For more information on Meter’s study

or the local food opportunities available in the region, contact

Karl Sutton at Lake County Community Development, 406-676-5901 or

ksutton@mmfec.org