Strengthening independent food systems is the crossroads of environmental, health, and social change. Today, food and agriculture companies are consolidated, and most of the world relies on a few global companies for the growing, processing, distributing and retailing of food.
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The economic impact of the global food system on local communities, particularly rural communities, is devastating. Strengthening independent systems helps farmers and local food producers make enough money to not just survive but to grow and scale, hiring more workers and boosting local economies
Global scale food production relies on massive volumes of cheap to produce ingredients that grow quickly with no consideration for nutrient density or environmental impact.
Nearly 75% of the world’s food comes from just 12 plants and 5 animal species.
We are currently losing plant species at a weekly rate. A recent study by the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology found that reduced biodiversity affects ecosystems at levels comparable to those of global warming and air pollution.
The Foodocracy was founded in 2020 in the midst of a pandemic, our broken supply chain highlighted the need for a more independent and sustainable food system. Quickly responding to the crisis, The Foodocracy provided free webinars for struggling farmers and family owned businesses. Our free Facebook group provided a safe space for them to connect and share information in a rapidly changing world. Our online store was created as a haven for farmers and artisans no longer able to sell goods at farmers markets and back logged with products created for restaurants that were now shuttered.
Partnering with organizations like Slow Food USA, we raised both awareness and funds to keep the independent food system alive and feeding their communities during this difficult time.
The pandemic may be over but the crisis in our food system is not. The Foodocracy has assisted more than 100 small farms and independent makers from across the United States with direct assistance, marketing and education in the past 3 years and we could have helped thousands more. The need is great and the only thing limiting us is funding.
Continued outreach and events like our session at the California Small Farm Conference have been sowing more seeds of change and promoting biodiversity, regenerative farming and soil health with farmers and consumers alike.
Foodocracy created the Farm Fund to provide direct relief to small, family-owned farms prioritizing Women and BIPOC farmers. Small farms make up up just 8 percent of agricultural land and that number is shrinking rapidly as multimillion dollar industrialized farms swallows up more and more of America’s farmland. This ever encroaching corporate farming is subsidized by farm grants which largely go to industrial farms owned by white men.
Only 37% of black applicants receive grants from the USDA.
Thanks to generious donations and proceeds from the Heirloom Bean and Grain Club we were able to help 3 BIPOC owned farms continue to feed their local communities.
The Foodocracy Marketplace is a free and fair independent food marketplace that helps keep indie food indie, and farms out of the hands of corporations. Visit our store to support small businesses and family owned farms across the US.
By the time you’re done paying the 25% to the distributor, the 15% to the sales broker, the slotting fee to the supermarket for your shelf space, providing your quarterly discounts and—above all—the free fill for the first order (in which you provide free product to the store for the privilege of being able to sell there, sometimes to the tune of six figures) whatever it is you’re making has to contain 12¢ worth of ingredients in massive batch sizes for the numbers to maybe pencil out.
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