SCC-CIVIC-PG Track B: A Coordinated Food Hub Network and Farm to Institution Program: Building Bridges between Small Local Farmers and Institutions in New York State Capital Region

食物获取是美国最大的社会问题之一。获取健康食品的挑战在弱势群体社区尤为突出。具有讽刺意味的是，当地的小农和健康食品生产商却难以维持生计。在全国各州，自20世纪60年代以来，家庭自有食品生产商的数量一直在稳步下降。本项目建议制定一项地方粮食合作（LFC）计划，该计划整合了(1)一个国家级的粮食中心网络，使多个区域粮食中心能够协调；(2)解决区域粮食不安全和不平等问题的区域农场到机构计划。拟议的LFC计划将提供一个信息交换平台，并可能进行交易，以便不同地区的粮食中心可以合作利用剩余粮食来提供稳定的供应。该计划还将使当地食品加工商能够以具有竞争力的价格加工和包装食品。该项目将使区域分销商能够利用其分销和运输能力以及当地资源有效地连接供需。该项目将帮助小型食品生产商获得使用该平台所需的知识和技术技能，并获得所需的认证。最后，通过将机构客户纳入该计划，供应商和客户可以及时交换有关产品需求和健康食品可用性的信息。在这个项目中，团队将为试点测试准备所有工作，该测试将：(1)收集数据并更新现有的食品消费预测模型；(2)将研究型技术模块整合到信息交流与交易平台中，包括供需预测与匹配、配送与运输优化等；(3)评估不同治理结构的有效性；(4)测试财务安排，这些安排将有助于吸引项目参与者，并确保项目的财务自我可持续性；(5)评估LFC计划的收益和成本及其可转移性和可扩展性。拟议的项目将通过将开创性研究纳入社区项目，显著改善食品供应链运营的实践状况。该项目还将促进货运需求预测的发展，因为该项目将利用新收集的粮食生产和消费数据来改进现有的货运生产模型，使其在预测粮食生产和消费以及机构消费者行为方面更加准确。该项目是对公民创新挑战项目（track b）的回应，旨在弥合基本资源与服务和社区需求之间的差距，是国家科学基金会、国土安全部和能源部之间的合作项目。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Food access is one of the largest social problems in the United States. The challenge of accessing healthy foods is especially pronounced in communities of disadvantaged populations. Ironically, small local farmers and producers of healthy foods struggle to make a living. In states across the country, the numbers of family own food producers have steadily declined since the 1960s. This project proposes to develop a Local Food Cooperation (LFC) program that integrates (1) a state-level food hub network which enables the coordination of multiple regional food hubs, and (2) regional Farm to Institution programs that address regional food insecurity and inequity. The proposed LFC program would provide a platform for information exchange and, possibly, trading so that food hubs in different regions can collaboratively leverage the surpluses to provide a stable supply. The program will also enable local food processors to process and pack food at a competitive price. The program would be able to engage regional distributors to use their distribution and transportation capabilities and local resources to efficiently connect supply and demand. This program would help small food producers to gain the necessary knowledge and technological skills to use the platform, and to get needed certifications. Finally, by integrating institutional customers into this program, it is possible for suppliers and customers to exchange information about needs for products and availability of healthy foods in a timely manner. In this project, the team will prepare all work for a pilot test that will (1) collect data and update the existing food consumption forecasting models; (2) integrate research-based technical modules into the information exchange and trading platform, which would include demand and supply prediction and matching, as well as distribution and transportation optimizers; (3) assess the effectiveness of different governance structures; (4) test the financial arrangements that will help attract participants to the program and also ensure the program’s financial self-sustainability; (5) evaluate the benefits and costs of the LFC program and its transferability and scalability. The proposed project will significantly improve the state-of practice of food supply chain operations by integrating pioneering research into a community-based program. It will also contribute to the state-of-art of freight demand forecasting, as the project will use newly collected food production and consumption data to enhance existing freight production models, making them more accurate in predicting food production and consumption, and institutional consumer behavior. This project is in response to the Civic Innovation Challenge program—Track B. Bridging the gap between essential resources and services & community needs—and is a collaboration between NSF, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Energy.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.