The vision
The Border Queen Harvest Hub (BQHH) vision is to establish a sustainable, practical and physical regional food system which includes all three components of a food system: production, processing and distribution. A digital hub, the Border Queen Harvest Hub website, will be used to connect both producers and consumers to each other. We use the Shop Kansas Farms (SKF) Harvest Hub model rebranded as our own organization led by community members to ensure longevity and impact. When the BQHH is established, consumers in the region will be able to look on a map and identify the supply chain of farms where their local food is being produced, the commercial kitchens and lockers where the food is processed and how and where those items can be purchased. The BQHH brand on products, signs and merchandise will create community pride and assurance they are buying local.
The opportunity: The economy of consumers buying local
We build on the continued success of SKF to connect more than 166,000 consumers to local farms and ranches. The Harvest Hub in Sumner County will create a more concentrated food system at a regional level. Establishing a local supply chain of production, processing and distribution is critical to respond to the increasing interest of consumers wanting to know where their food comes from (identity preservation) and are willing to pay more because of the connection (inelastic demand).
The opportunity: Increased access to local, healthy foods
Numerous health initiatives such as Food is Medicine, Kansas Health Foundation Healthy Foods Initiative Grants and KSU’s Kansas Healthy Food Initiative provides various frameworks for food banks and health care providers so there is an increasing demand for local foods that provide market opportunities for growers.
The parallel tracks of the Border Queen Harvest Hub
Economic development: The Harvest Hub will expand small businesses with new revenue streams and support entrepreneurs with new opportunities in these three areas:
- Producers: We will identify and support current and future producers in the region to create new revenue streams, gain access to capital, find new markets, write business plans, provide sales and marketing support, build customer relationship management systems, develop communications strategies and be more easily found by consumers.
- Processing: We will identify and support local meat processors and commercial kitchens in existence, or, in the absence of those necessary elements, we will help establish that missing link in the local supply chain.
- Distribution: We will provide support to producers with the distribution of their products by helping them learn how to ship.
Community engagement: We will work with the community to create a common agenda, shared measurements, mutually reinforcing activities and continuous communication.