The Puget Sound Food Hub Farmer Advisory Committee has formed a cooperative to take on the ownership of the Puget Sound Food Hub, which provides a web-based platform and aggregation and distribution services for local farms.

In the past year, more than 60 farms used the hub and sold to 220 customers throughout the Puget Sound region.

Within the Puget Sound Food Hub, each sales transaction is directly between farmer and buyer; the farm name is identified throughout the transaction including the website, invoice, and case label. Buyers can purchase from multiple farms, with combined delivery and invoicing.

A buyer selects and purchases products via the website. Farmers are notified via e-mail and then harvest, pack, and deliver the products to an aggregation site, where they are combined with other farms’ product to be route-delivered to multiple buyers.

In 2012, the Puget Sound Food Hub began as a partnership between the Northwest Agriculture Business Center and 21 Acres, which provided the first “hub” aggregation site and distribution services into the Seattle market for King and Snohomish County Farms.

In 2013 NABC and 21 Acres joined forces with Bow Hill Blueberries, providing cold and freezer storage aggregation for the North Sound Food Hub, serving farm and business customers in Skagit, Whatcom, Island and San Juan counties.

In 2014 Cloud Mountain Farm Center was added as a third aggregation site in Whatcom County, providing delivery to Whatcom and Skagit customers.

Harley Soltes, co-owner of Bow Hill Blueberries with his wife Susan, have supported the beginning and growth of the hub, and the collaboration of the participating farms.

“As farmers, we have been working on this project since 2012. Forming a cooperative was a natural progression to enable the farmers to take ownership of the distribution system we helped to create. We could not have accomplished this without the partnership of NABC, 21 Acres, some wonderfully supportive foundations, and the USDA. There are other distributors doing a good job, but we think a farmer-owned distribution system is a great alternative for the customers and the farmers.”

Terri Hanson, NABC’s Project Manager for the Puget Sound Food Hub has provided management and administrative services for the hub over the past two years. The cooperative determined to continue with this arrangement and has contracted with NABC for continued services.

“I’m excited to be working directly for the farmers and our continued partnership with 21 Acres. Our goal has always been to transition the Puget Sound Food Hub to cooperative ownership. These farmers are such great group to work with and they’ve shown a tremendous commitment to the formation, growth, and sustainability of the Puget Sound Food Hub,” she said.

The start-up and effort has had the financial support of the Human Links Foundation, the Not Yet Foundation, the Thread Fund, and the Whatcom Community Foundation. NABC is a USDA-designated Cooperative Development Center and received support from the USDA to help the new farmer-owners with developing the cooperative.

Gretchen Garth, founder and president of the Human Links Foundation has supported the Puget Sound Food Hub since its inception. “21 Acres and the Human Links Foundation have been pleased to support the food hub. We are excited about the farmers taking on ownership and we look forward to helping them realize the vision and true potential of the hub.”

Learn more at www.agbizcenter.org.