Get an overview of what we know about changing consumer demand and some of the drivers behind these changes in demand. Learn how the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Local Food Research and Development Division is trying to help farmers and food marketers take advantage of the recent surge in local food demand through grant assistance, primary data collection, applied research on emerging business models, technical assistance, and market facility design.

Debra Tropp of the USDA outlines a recent effort to capture and quantify economic impacts of local food system investments. She discusses the rollout of a toolkit that can be used by planners and other development practitioners in responding to oft-repeated questions about the expected job creation and economic activity resulting from public investments in local food systems infrastructure.