What is the issue?
The local food movement is big! Consumers are driving the local food movement in the marketplace, but many of South Carolina’s public agencies have not yet taken the plunge. Investment on all levels, private and public, in local agriculture has the potential to revitalize SC’s rural economy. We have a tremendous opportunity that needs to be seized — to ask state agencies and state owned facilities to localize their food purchases. From correctional facilities to schools, a large amount of food is being procured with public money. Now is our chance to make that expenditure one that benefits our state’s farmers and farmland.
How would it affect South Carolina?
The more money that we spend on local produce, the more the private sector responds with adequate infrastructure and supply. Increasing the purchase of local farm products is an investments in our state’s farmers. Reliable customers allow local farmers to earn a living. When local farmers are successful, our rural communities thrive, overall public health improves, and our rural lands are conserved.
What can you do about it?
Ask your legislator to support S.1048, a concurrent resolution that establishes a goal for state agencies and state-owned facilities to source 15% of their food or food products from local farmers by the year 2015.
S.1048 was introduced by Senators Verdin (R-Laurens) and Elliot (R-Horry) and passed out of the full Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on January 11th. Unfortunately, after this favorable committee meeting, Senator Ryberg (R-Aiken) put his name on the resolution and halted its progress. We are working to alleviate Senator Ryberg’s concerns and we expect to see passage of this resolution by mid session.
Ask your legislator to support our state’s rural economies!
- Farmers will have a larger pool of customers.
- The state will begin to examine and analyze where their food is grown.
- Citizens consuming these locally purchased foods will enjoy nutrient dense fresh foods.
- SC will lead the way in beginning to secure a local food supply - creating a more resilient community for all of her residents.
- We would take a step backward in the local food movement.
- We would continue to send tax payer dollars to purveyors in other states.
- We would have lost an opportunity to reduce our food carbon footprint.
- We would miss an opportunity to learn more about local food supply chain.
- A loss would be a gesture to the food world, and young farmers would be less inclined to start a new farm in a state that does not support local agriculture.
Public agencies should be supporting our state’s rural economies!
CCL seeks passage of a concurrent resolution (S.1048) that establishes a goal for state agencies and state-owned facilities to source 15% of their food or food products from local farmers by the year 2015.
S.1048 was introduced by Senators Verdin (R-Laurens) and Elliot (R-Horry) and passed out of the full Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on January 11th. Unfortunately, after this favorable committee meeting, Senator Ryberg (R-Aiken) put his name on the resolution and halted its progress. We are working to alleviate Senator Ryberg’s concerns and we expect to see passage of this resolution by mid session.
