Local Foods, Local Places
- Background
- Applying for Assistance
- Local Foods, Local Places Toolkit
- Community Stories
- 2017 Local Foods, Local Places Summit
- Partner Communities
Background
Local Foods, Local Places helps cities and towns across the country protect the environment and human health by engaging with local partners to reinvest in existing neighborhoods as they develop local food systems. In 2021, the program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and EPA.
Local Foods, Local Places supports locally led, community-driven efforts to protect air and water quality, preserve open space and farmland, boost economic opportunities for local farmers and businesses, improve access to healthy local food, and promote childhood wellness.
Through Local Foods, Local Places, partner communities have worked on projects such as:
- Opening year-round, downtown markets featuring foods from local farmers.
- Planning cooperative grocery stores and other food access options to help revitalize small-town main streets.
- Creating centrally located community kitchens or food hubs to aggregate and market local foods.
- Starting business incubators to help entrepreneurs launch food-related businesses on main streets.
- Making it easier for people to walk or bicycle to farmers markets and local restaurants.
- Helping schoolchildren to grow their own food, and making healthy local food accessible to families, including via SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits.
- Exploring ways to use Opportunity Zones in the context of local food system development and downtown revitalization.
- Developing community gardens in walkable, transit-accessible places.
In selecting Local Foods, Local Places partner communities, special consideration is given to communities in the early stages of developing local food enterprises and creating economically vibrant communities.
Local Foods, Local Places builds on the ARC-EPA-USDA Livable Communities in Appalachia partnership, which worked to promote economic development, preserve rural lands, and increase access to locally grown food in Appalachian towns and rural communities.
Many of the communities we work with through Local Foods, Local Places are small towns or rural communities. To find more of our resources for rural places and learn about how revitalization can help towns strengthen their economies, improve quality of life, and protect the environment and human health, see our Smart Growth in Small Towns and Rural Communities page.
Applying for Assistance
The application period for the most recent round of planning assistance from Local Foods, Local Places closed on November 13, 2020. The application is available here for reference only.
If you have questions about the program or the application process, please read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About Local Foods, Local Places.
Local Foods, Local Places Toolkit
Based on the best practices and lessons learned from Local Foods, Local Places workshops, EPA developed the Local Foods, Local Places Toolkit to help communities interested in using local foods to support downtown and neighborhood revitalization. The toolkit provides step-by-step instructions for planning and hosting a community workshop and includes case studies and templates communities can adapt to their needs.
Community Stories
Learn about some of the communities that have hosted Local Foods, Local Places workshops.
Story Map
- See the Community Stories map (link will open in a new window or tab) to learn about how Williamson, West Virginia, used Local Foods, Local Places and other EPA assistance to develop strategies to drive downtown revitalization using local foods and health facilities.
Podcast
- Harlan, Kentucky: Listen to this podcast to learn how Harlan's participation in Local Foods, Local Places is helping the town grow its local food economy and revitalize downtown.
Case Studies
- Ajo, Arizona
- Gloucester, Massachusetts
- Huntington, West Virginia
- North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
- Passaic, New Jersey
- Walterboro, South Carolina
- Williamson, West Virginia Exit (from the Rural Health Information Hub)
Videos
- Corbin, Kentucky: See how community members in Corbin used local foods to revitalize their downtown, helping to reduce the vacancy rate from 40 percent to 5 percent.
- Peoria, Illinois: See how community members in Peoria are developing a vision of using the local food system to support community revitalization in the Southside neighborhood.
- Rainelle, West Virginia: See how Rainelle is using Local Foods, Local Places assistance to build a robust local food economy, revitalize downtown, and bring hope and health to community members while recovering from floods that devastated the community in the summer of 2016.
- Williamson, West Virginia: See how community members in Williamson used a health care center and local foods to anchor their downtown redevelopment efforts.
Photo Essays From Local Foods, Local Places Workshops
2017 Local Foods, Local Places Summit
In 2017, EPA and its federal partners brought together representatives from 33 of the 90 communities served through LFLP (and its predecessor, Livable Communities in Appalachia) to discuss their successes and challenges with different local food and community development approaches. This summary, Lessons from Community Leaders on Using Local Foods to Revitalize Downtowns, shares the experiences of the communities participating in the summit more broadly and is useful for LFLP communities that could not attend the summit as well as other places looking for advice on starting and maintaining local food and revitalization projects.
Partner Communities
2020 Partner Communities
Local Foods, Local Places is working with 16 partner communities in 2020. EPA will be flexible in working with these communities on next steps for the planned projects, as necessary, considering that many communities are still dealing with issues related to COVID-19.
- Cottage Grove, Oregon (city of Cottage Grove)
- Evansville, Indiana (city of Evansville)
- Fayette, Alabama (Fayette County Extension Office)
- Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (Redevelopment Authority of the City of Harrisburg)
- Johnstown, Pennsylvania (Vision Together 2025)
- Kansas City, Missouri (Mattie Rhodes Center)
- North Lake Charles, Louisiana (SWLA Center for Health Services)
- Opelousas, Louisiana (Opelousas General Health System Foundation)
- Pelican Rapids, Minnesota (West Central Initiative)
- Poughkeepsie, New York (Hudson River Housing, Inc.)
- Redding, California (Healthy Shasta)
- Salisbury, North Carolina (city of Salisbury)
- Springfield, Illinois (city of Springfield)
- Vicksburg, Mississippi (Shape Up Mississippi)
- Woonsocket, Rhode Island (NeighborWorks Blackstone River Valley)
- York, Nebraska (York County Development Corporation)
Read the Summary Report on 2020 Communities describing the projects these communities will undertake.
2019 Partner Communities
Local Foods, Local Places worked with 15 partner communities in 2019:
- Aliquippa, Pennsylvania (City of Aliquippa Economic Development Corporation)
- Charlottesville, Virginia (Charlottesville Food Justice Network)
- Duluth, Minnesota (Ecolibrium3)
- Fort Pierce, Florida (city of Fort Pierce)
- Frankfort, Kentucky (city of Frankfort)
- Indianapolis, Indiana (Near East Area Renewal)
- Lewiston-Auburn, Maine (St. Mary’s Nutrition Center)
- Little Falls, Minnesota (Sprout MN)
- Malone, New York (Malone Chamber of Commerce)
- Mt. Pulaski, Illinois (Mt. Pulaski Economic Development and Planning Board)
- Peoria, Illinois (city of Peoria)
- Pulaski, Virginia (town of Pulaski)
- Russellville, Arkansas (city of Russellville)
- Saint Paul, Minnesota (Asian Economic Development Association)
- St. Albans City, Vermont (Northwest Healthy Roots Collaborative at Northwestern Medical Center)
Read the Summary Report on 2019 Communities describing the projects these communities will undertake.
2018 Partner Communities
Local Foods, Local Places worked with 16 partner communities in 2018:
- Anadarko, Oklahoma (Delaware Nation)
- Anchorage, Alaska (Alaska Food Policy Council)
- Biddeford, Maine (Engine)
- Cortland, New York (Seven Valleys Health Coalition)
- Duck Hill, Mississippi (Action Communication and Education Reform)
- Elba, Alabama (Restoration154/Foundation154)
- Farmington, New Mexico (New Mexico State University)
- Helena, Arkansas (Helena-West Helena/Phillips County Port Authority)
- Hindman, Kentucky (Hindman Settlement School)
- Hopewell, Virginia (Hopewell Downtown Partnership)
- Indiana, Pennsylvania (Sustainable Economic Development Task Force of Indiana County)
- Louisville, Kentucky (Jefferson County Soil and Water Conservation District)
- McCrory, Arkansas (city of McCrory)
- North Charleston, South Carolina (Lowcountry Alliance for Model Communities)
- Phoenix, Arizona (city of Phoenix)
- Silver City, New Mexico (The Volunteer Center of Grant County)
Learn more about the 2018 partner communities:
- Read the Update on 2018 Communities describing these projects.
- Read the Local Foods, Local Places Community Action Plans developed by the partner communities.
2017 Partner Communities
Local Foods, Local Places worked with 24 partner communities in 2017:
- Alamosa, Colorado (Local Foods Coalition)
- Albany, Kentucky (The Clinton County Cooperative Extension Service)
- Albuquerque, New Mexico (DowntownABQ MainStreet Initiative)
- Appleton City, Missouri (West Central Missouri Community Action Agency)
- Bridgeport, Connecticut (Bridgeport Food Policy Council)
- Cincinnati, Ohio (Working in Neighborhoods)
- Coamo, Puerto Rico (municipality of Coamo)
- Detroit, Michigan (Detroit Public Schools)
- Graham, North Carolina (city of Graham)
- Greenwich, New York (Village of Greenwich)
- Harlan, Kentucky (Mountain Comprehensive Health Organization)
- Henderson, North Carolina (Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission)
- Holyoke, Massachusetts (Nuestras Raices)
- Hopkinsville, Kentucky (Christian County/Hopkinsville Development Corporation)
- Humboldt, Tennessee (Humboldt Chamber of Commerce)
- Jamestown, New York (Jamestown Renaissance Corporation)
- Lapwai, Idaho (Nez Perce Tribe)
- Martinsville, Virginia (city of Martinsville)
- McComb, Ohio (McComb Economic Development Organization)
- Nampa, Idaho (city of Nampa)
- Nogales, Arizona (Mariposa Community Health Center)
- Tallulah, Louisiana (Louisiana State University Agricultural Center)
- Ukiah, California (North Coast Opportunities)
- Whitesville, West Virginia (West Virginia Community Development Hub)
- Read the Update on 2017 Communities describing these projects.
- Read the Local Foods, Local Places Community Action Plans developed by the partner communities.
2016 Partner Communities
Local Foods, Local Places worked with 27 partner communities in 2016:
- Baltimore, Maryland (Baltimore Public Markets Corporation)
- Bessemer, Alabama (city of Bessemer)
- Christiansburg, Virginia (city of Christiansburg)
- Connellsville, Pennsylvania (The Redevelopment Authority)
- Crisfield, Maryland (Somos Inc.)
- Dallas, Texas (city of Dallas)
- Denver, Colorado (city and county of Denver Office of Economic Development)
- Fresno, California (city of Fresno)
- Gainesville, Missouri (Ozark County Homegrown Food Projects)
- Gary, Indiana (city of Gary)
- Gloucester, Massachusetts (city of Gloucester)
- Greeley, Colorado (University of Northern Colorado)
- Henderson, Nevada (city of Henderson)
- High Point, North Carolina (city of High Point)
- Honolulu, Hawaii (Hawaii Community Development Authority)
- Jackson, Tennessee (city of Jackson)
- Keeseville, New York (Adirondack North County Association)
- Lake Village, Arkansas (city of Lake Village)
- Martin, Tennessee (city of Martin)
- Memphis, Tennessee (Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market)
- Middlesboro, Kentucky (Discover Downtown Middlesboro, Inc.)
- Mission, South Dakota (Rosebud Economic Development Corporation of the Sioux Tribe)
- Palmer, Alaska (Grow Palmer)
- Passaic, New Jersey (city of Passaic)
- Rainelle, West Virginia (The Greenbrier Valley Economic Development Corporation)
- Walterboro, South Carolina (The Colleton Museum and Farmers Market)
- Winder, Georgia (Winder Housing Authority)
- Read the Update on 2016 Partner Communities describing these projects.
- Read the Local Foods, Local Places Community Action Plans developed by the partner communities.
2015 Partner Communities
Local Foods, Local Places worked with 26 partner communities in 2015:
- Ajo, Arizona (Ajo Regional Food Partnership)
- Allentown, Pennsylvania (The Rodale Institute)
- Barbourville, Kentucky (city of Barbourville)
- Canton, New York (village of Canton)
- Clarksdale, Mississippi (Griot Arts Inc.)
- Fallon, Nevada (Churchill Economic Development Authority)
- Flippin, Arkansas (city of Flippin)
- Forest County, Pennsylvania
- Hazard, Kentucky (The Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky)
- Idabel, Oklahoma (The Choctaw Nation)
- Itta Bena, Mississippi (multiple partners)
- Jefferson City, Missouri (Downtown Jefferson City, Inc.)
- Lafayette, Louisiana (Lafayette Consolidated Government)
- Los Angeles, California (Youth Policy Institute)
- Loyal, Wisconsin (West Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission)
- New Orleans, Louisiana (The Friends of Lafitte Corridor)
- North Little Rock, Arkansas (Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub)
- Osceola, Arkansas (city of Osceola)
- Rocky Mount, North Carolina (city of Rocky Mount)
- Tracy City, Tennessee (municipality of Tracy City)
- Tuskegee, Alabama (multiple partners)
- Unity, Maine (town of Unity)
- Vinton, Texas (village of Vinton)
- Wheeling, West Virginia (Grow Ohio Valley)
- Williamson, West Virginia (Williamson Health and Wellness Center)
- Youngstown, Ohio (Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation)
- Read the Summary Report on 2015 Partner Communities to learn more about these projects.
- Read the Local Foods, Local Places Community Action Plans developed by the partner communities.