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Amy Brucker, left, is co-founder of the Local Growers' Network in Knox County. She and her husband, Greg, also run Appleton Hollow Farms.
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Local Growers' Network farmstand in Knox County, Ill.
Joining the throng at a Saturday morning farmers' market in summer usually is more joy than chore, but when you can't make it there, getting your hands on fresh, local foods gets harder. When that happens, wouldn't it be nice to know what farmers are selling? Wouldn't it be even better if you could order the foods you want via e-mail, then pick them up on your way home from work?
In essence, this is the service that the Local Growers' Network in Knox County, Ill., cropped up to provide in 2008. LGN also hosts a farmers' market on Saturdays through the growing season.
"We had a good season. We actually moved the farmstand to Oak Run, and we have this e-mail thing, which really took off. We're already adding new growers for next year," says Julie Haugland, who founded LGN with her friend and neighbor, Amy Brucker.
"It was interesting because the name that we chose, Local Growers' Network, really dictated the direction that the group went. We knew we were committed to local food, but we didn't know it would create such a stir in the community," says Brucker.
"Some people have asked us, 'Why don't you just do a CSA?' They are wonderful, but one of the downfalls is that the customer does not have a choice," she says.
"This way, they're not committing big dollars right away," says Haugland, who owns Vintages, the Galesburg wine shop where customers pick up their orders. "It's not a co-op, but it's sort of creating a new generation of co-op. We want to be the bridge that helps growers get their produce into the hands of customers."
This year LGN will start charging farmers a small fee for its services. Last year, the women's families absorbed the costs of running the network, which started out with just a handful of small farms. Haugland says the new fees are minimal but necessary.
A testament to the burgeoning local-foods movement, the biggest problem that the pair faced last year was an enviable one: "We just couldn't meet the demand," says Brucker.
This year promises to be one of further growth for the network. In 2008 Knox College in Galesburg, Ill., approached the group about purchasing large amounts of fresh produce, including Japanese greens and other produce that can be hard to find in the Midwest.
"The list is extensive, and volume is massive. We are overwhelmed with it," says Haugland. The farmers who comprise the group already are working on who will grow what. Andrew Fritz of Fritzy's Herb Farm will grow some of the greens in his hoop house, and other growers in the group will split up the rest of the order to provide as much as they can, says Haugland.
She and her husband, Robert, run Frog Pond Farm, which produces sustainably-grown fruits and vegetables. The pair purchased the 22-acre farm in 2006, when they moved to Knox County from Chicago.
Brucker and her husband, Greg, run Appleton Hollow Farms, which won't be part of LGN this year. In late 2008, Brucker decided to step away from LGN to pursue other local-food projects. Other growers involved with LGN include Leslie Schenkel of Twisted Chicken, Tom Arnold of Blue Hills Farm and growers Pam Pecenka and Tom Callopy. The farmers convene to plan what they grow in an effort to prevent overlap and to supply the greatest variety possible for their customers.
LGN also is working to offer local foods through the cold months, when farmers' markets -- including the LGN market in Oak Run -- are closed. (Not all farmers' markets are closed in winter, however; for a list, visit radishmagazine.com/markets.) So far, they've been working with Erin Meyer of Basil's Harvest in Elmwood, Ill., who makes granola, bread, soups, vinegars and dry rubs for meats.
"For LGN to do something midwinter, we'd also need to have something like fresh herbs going. That would be great," says Haugland.
At this time of year, she is busy communicating with growers in the hopes of expanding LGN's ranks, writing grants and planning outreach programs. One such event could happen in September.
"We're looking at a farm-to-table day next September, with lots of produce. It would be a big day at our farm, with tours and educational programming and a gourmet meal," she says.
"I'd like to be an e-mail farmstand," she says. "I want to get local food in people's hands and on their plates."
To sign up for harvest updates, e-mail lgnfarmstand@yahoo.com. For more information about the market or the network, call Julie Haugland at (309) 335-2744.
