The January Agribusiness Collaborative meeting was held at the La Montanita Cooperative Distribution Center (CDC). Approximately 45 people from a variety of backgrounds attended to tour the CDC and discuss the barriers and solutions related to local food storage and distribution.

At the meeting, Michelle Franklin and Steve Warshawer from the La Montanita CDC discussed their distribution operation; Monte Skarsgard from Los Poblanos Organics discussed storage needs and current strategies; and Dale Petty from the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union discussed storage and distribution needs of Northern New Mexico farmers

A little background on the Cooperative Distribution Center: 

• La Montanita began distributing locally produced products in the spring of 2006, and in January of 2007 they opened the CDC on Columbia Drive in Albuquerque. 
• The CDC consists of 6,000 square feet of dry storage, 3,000 square feet of refrigerated storage, and 1,000 square feet of frozen storage. 
• The CDC purchases local products and distributes them not only to their Co-op stores, but also to Whole Foods and Raley’s in Albuquerque, as well as retailers in Taos, Silver city and Las Cruces. 
• The idea behind the distribution program is to efficiently move local goods from producers to vendors and consumers operating within a 300 mile radius of Albuquerque. The CDC helps to expand the local marketplace for New Mexico’s local food economy, while also educating consumers on the benefits of buying local products.

Michelle Franklin and Steve Warshawer talked about how the La Montanita CDC works best with either small farms that specialize in a product or medium sized farms that have more production capability. This is due to the volume needed for redistribution, and the CDC works with producers to educate them on the volumes and types of products that can be marketed and distributed.

Monte Skarsgard talked about the ways in which Los Poblanos Organics reduces the time between when crops are picked and when they reach the consumer. He also talked about efficient distribution and how famines are caused by poor food distribution and not a lack of food. 

Dale Petty from the RM Farmers Union covered a variety of topics, including the need for storage, marketing, and distribution of Northern New Mexico wheat. His talk sparked a group conversation about collaboration among groups who are all working toward the same goals of local food distribution.

Please join us for the next Agribusiness Collaborative meeting on local meat and livestock production. The meeting will be held at the MRCOG Offices on Wednesday February 13, 2008. Sign up for email notification of blog postings (lower right hand of the page) to keep up to date on meetings and other local food issues.