NCGT Monthly Project Update

In This Issue

NCGT Releases Study on NC Seafood Transportation Logistics

NCGT to Sponsor Summer 2015 Local Food Supply Chain Interns

Web Resource Spotlight: Process Walkthrough at a Regional Produce Distribution Center

About NCGT

GOAL | Bring more locally-grown foods - produce, meat, dairy, and seafood - into mainstream retail and food service supply chains, thus enhancing food security by increasing access to local foods and by strengthening the economics of small to mid-sized farm and fishing operations.

STRATEGY | Identify the most promising solutions by which local production and associated value-added activities can enter local retail and food service markets, pilot these solutions in North Carolina, and evaluate and report the results for the benefit of other states and regions.

October 1, 2014

Greetings all,

Thanks for reading our monthly project update and please let us know what you think!

Sincerely,

The NCGT Management Team

NCGT Releases Study on North Carolina Seafood Transportation Logistics

Wanchese Fish Company credit Dr Garrity-Blake

Wanchese Fish Company in Wanchese, NC. Photo by Dr. Garrity-Blake.

In September, NC Growing Together released Keep It Moving: North Carolina Seafood Transportation Logistics with a Focus on East to West Routes. The report, by Dr. Barbara Garrity-Blake of the Duke University Marine Laboratory and Megan Ware of Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment, examines how and to what extent seafood is currently being transported to in-state markets west of Interstate 95, and identifies challenges to and opportunities for improving the east-to-west supply chain.

The study is part of an effort to identify and strengthen in-state supply chains and markets as an alternative or addition to the long-standing north/south trajectory along the I-95 corridor to Baltimore and points north. It is also intended to support efforts to capitalize on the local foods movement and increase profit margins on smaller volumes of North Carolina seafood products.

Says Dr. Garrity-Blake, "North Carolina fishermen recognize that marketing seafood in-state is a good way to cultivate brand identity and maintain product value."

The report compliments the work of NCGT Supply Chain fellow Jessica Newsome on the NC seafood industry. Read the reports on the Research page of the NCGT website.

NCGT to Sponsor Summer 2015 Local Food Supply Chain Interns at Partner Organizations

Sydney Grice, NC State student and 2014 NCGT Summer Intern at Lowes Foods.

North Carolina Growing Together is proud to announce the Summer 2015 Local Food Supply Chain Internship. The internship will provide opportunities for undergraduate or graduate students to gain training and professional development related to local food systems and value chains work.

Interns can dedicate 40 hours per week for an 8-week period. Interns selected will be undergraduate, graduate, and professional school students and are fully funded through NCGT. Travel will also be funded through NCGT at a limited rate.

Critical to the success of this project is identifying mentors from interested partner organizations who are capable of and willing to mentor an individual for the 8-week period.

If you are interested in mentoring a Local Food Supply Chain intern, please fill out this online form by October 20, 2014.

For questions or more information please contact NCGT Summer Internship Program Coordinator Graham Givens at gegivens@ncsu.edu.

NCGT Web Resource Spotlight: Process Walkthrough at a Regional Produce Distribution Center

If you've ever wondered how produce moves through a distributor's warehouse, Process Walkthrough at a Regional Produce Distribution Center will answer your questions with step-by-step detail and helpful photographs.

Photo by Sebastian Naskaris.

Produced by 2013-2014 NC Growing Together Supply Chain Fellow Sebastian Naskaris, the document is designed to introduce produce vendors to the warehouse management systems through which produce moves from the vendor delivering product to the warehouse, to the shipment from the warehouse to the retailer.

The fascinating look at the inner workings of the warehouse facility covers the processes of arrival, unloading, quality control, placement in inventory, selection from inventory, and preparation for delivery. It also includes tips to help vendors have favorable experiences when working with a large warehouse.

View the Process Walkthrough here or on the NCGT website's Resources for Producers page.

Project Contact Information

Rebecca Dunning, NCGT Project and Research Director, rebecca_dunning@ncsu.edu, 919-389-2220

Nancy Creamer, Director of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems, NC State University; and Project Director, NC Growing Together, nancy_creamer@ncsu.edu, 919-515-9447

Michelle Schroeder-Moreno, NCGT Academic Coordinator, michelle_schroeder@ncsu.edu, 919-513-0085

Joanna Lelekacs, NCGT Extension and Training Coordinator, joanna_lelekacs@ncsu.edu, 919-244-5269

John Day, NCGT Military Partnership Coordinator, john_day@ncsu.edu, 704-785-6670

Ariel Fugate, Locally Grown Accounts Representative, Lowes Foods; and Lowes Foods Liaison, NC Growing Together, ariel.fugate@lowesfoods.com, 859-552-3467

Patricia Tripp, NCGT Wholesaler Liaison, patriciatripp1@gmail.com, 336-458-6980

JJ Richardson, NCGT Website and Communications Coordinator, jj_richardson@ncsu.edu, 919-889-8219

This project is supported by the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grant no. 2012-68004-20363 of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

� 2013-2014 NC Growing Together