Thursday, April 09, 2020

The Three Silos: Food Supply in the Age of Covid-19

The pandemic has revealed we have three silos in the food supply system:

  • commodity agriculture supplying supermarkets and groceries.  This silo is working pretty well.
  • food service agriculture supplying restaurants and fast food outlets.  Because the restaurant industry is closed down, except for delivery service (a possible fourth silo), this silo is in deep trouble.  Farmers supplying milk are having to dump, those supplying produce are having to dump. 
  • the direct to consumer (Community supported agriculture and farmers markets).  This silo seems also in trouble according to this Times article.
The net result of the pandemic may be a setback for the farm-to-table movement.

[Updated: another Times article.]

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