5 Farms Take Food to Consumers Through the Web
9/8/98
MONTEVIDEO, Minn. Ñ Five western Minnesota farms are connecting with consumers
via cyber space as part of an innovative new effort to encourage production of
sustainable food. The farm families have teamed up with the Land Stewardship
Project (LSP) and the Sustainable Farming Association (SFA) of Western Minnesota
to create prairiefare.com, a web site that went on line at the end of August.
To take a virtual internet tour of the five prairiefare.com farms, type in:
<http://www.prairiefare.com>. These farms offer various types of meat, as well
as apples. If youÕre traveling through western Minnesota and want to check out
the prairiefare.com computer kiosk, stop by the Java River coffee house on
MontevideoÕs Main Street, or call (320) 269-7106.
The site gives consumers a virtual tour of the five farms, providing, among
other things, vivid color pictures of the farm families engaged in daily
activities. Computer users can click their way onto pages that describe
everything from a farmÕs history to how it produces pork or beef on pasture.
Pricing and ordering information is also available, and orders can be made
either via e-mail, or by contacting the farms through the phone and regular
mail.
The web site was launched in an effort to reach more consumers who might be
interested in buying their food straight from farms which raise it in a way
thatÕs kind to the land, said LeeAnn Van Der Pol, coordinator of the Western
Minnesota SFA and a farmer-member of prairiefare.com. Van Der Pol produces pork,
beef and lamb with her husband Jim near Kerkhoven.
One of the key elements of prairiefare.com is the presence of the computer kiosk
at Java River. The kiosk is set up so that people who are not comfortable with
computers can tour the farms right at the cafe. It features a screen that
responds to touch, eliminating the need to use a keyboard and mouse, thus making
even the most digitally challenged feel comfortable. ItÕs hoped consumers will
use the cafe as a place where they can meet the farmers and learn more about
food production practices that protect valuable resources such as the Minnesota
River, said Patrick Moore, co-owner of Java River and an LSP organizer who works
on watershed issues.
ÒWe want to connect farmers upstream with consumers downstream,Ó said Moore.
ÒThe water these farmers are protecting is flowing right into the Twin Cities.Ó
The Land Stewardship Project is a 16-year old private, nonprofit organization
dedicated to fostering an ethic for farmland, promoting sustainable agriculture
and developing sustainable communities. The Sustainable Farming Association was
founded in 1988 as a farmer-to-farmer information network for developing
agricultural practices that are economically and environmentally sound.
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