The Belknap Foodshed: Making a Difference That Matters

By Mark Okrant

These are difficult times. Everyday, we learn about peoples’ struggles to earn a living and to put nutritious food on the table. We cannot help but wonder, in one of the Earth’s most advanced nations, how to ameliorate the process of making quality food available to our residents. Every now and then, an idea comes along that provides a pathway toward solving that seemingly complex problem. 

Charged with addressing the availability of quality food in central New Hampshire are Mary and Gavin Macdonald, operators of The Belknap Foodshed. The pair established Genuine Local, a shared-use kitchen and food accelerator to fill the gap created by a lack of access to commercial production facilities by providing business development and production assistance, as well as co-packing services. In simple terms, Genuine Local was designed as a business incubator for producing consumable goods with a ready market to increase growers’ value-added. 

Unfortunately, on the way to the successful implementation of their idea, the operators ran head-long into the COVID-19 pandemic. Once COVID hit, many of the small food businesses and farms they worked with ran into challenges with market access. However, it soon became apparent that the demand for fresh, quality produce was alive and well. This led to the launch of a sister company, The Belknap Foodshed, an online farmers market that connects local food with surrounding communities. In the process, the Foodshed brings fresh, safe/healthy, locally grown and produced food to the people of New Hampshire.

The Belknap Foodshed dates back to 2018, when the Macdonalds were approached about developing a plan for utilizing the former Laconia State School property on Route 106 in Laconia, New Hampshire. While plans to develop an extensive food production and distribution scheme at the school were not completed due to COVID, that situation led to the early launch of the aggregation and distribution components of their plan. 

From its central collection point on 5 Winona Road in Meredith, the Foodshed takes deliveries from an average of 24 producers each week to fill customers’ retail and wholesale orders. The network produces approximately four hundred items in total, with an average of two hundred and fifty items available each week. Each producer registers with the Foodshed and indicates what they wish to sell through the organization. The product range includes: granola, assorted vegetables and fruit, various types of honey and maple products, as well as dairy, meat products, and eggs, condiments and seasonings, breads, fresh fish, and numerous others. 

At present, the Foodshed has 227 registered customers. However, this figure is misleading, as a number of these are wholesalers whose impact on the food community is considerable. Customers register to shop by creating an account, thereby joining the Foodshed’s email list. Orders can be placed anytime between Saturdays at 7 am and Wednesdays at 12 noon. To receive orders, customers utilize one of five pickup spots within the region.

Friday pickups:

• curbside at 5 Winona Road in Meredith

• in the Pleasant Street municipal parking lot in Laconia

• curbside at the Gilford Community Church

• curbside at the Tilton Senior Citizen Center on Grange Road

Saturday pickups:

• at Purely Wholesome Farm on Upper Ridge Road in Loudon

Otherwise, door-to-door deliveries are available in Meredith and Laconia, for a modest charge. Additionally, by participating as a producer with the Three Rivers Farmers Alliance, Belknap Foodshed products are available in the southeastern corner of the state. Finally, a special relationship exists with local restaurants, stores, and institutions who register as customers. For these people, the Foodshed provides access to products at wholesale prices.

So, what does a business entity—one that has been established to link agricultural and other primary producers with consumers—do for an encore? The next phase is utterly exciting. The Macdonalds foresee The Belknap Foodshed continuing to grow in numerous ways. Access to local food will expand as production extends beyond the Lakes Region. By working with the New Hampshire Food Alliance and other food hubs, the relationship between producers and customers will operate as an ecosystem for creating food supplies. Their ambitious effort will fortify food systems by strengthening linkages among farming, product sales, shelf-stable food preparation, distribution, on-site restaurants, retail, and education. The impact will be felt statewide, as the Foodshed will make linkages among food hubs and distribution efforts within the Seacoast, Monadnock, and North Country regions.

Elements of this food ecosystem include: 1. cultivating food and preserving open agricultural land; 2. aggregating, distributing, and creating access to retail markets; 3. incubating local food companies; 4. fostering business development and job creation; 5. creating educational and training opportunities; and 6. establishing “locavore” retail and restaurant facilities. 

Through these interrelated elements, local land will be farmed with the goal of targeting crops to create a sustainable supply of ingredients for people and institutions within the region. Next, utilizing the Foodshed’s central geographic location, existing connections will be expanded and created to distribute local food products statewide. Further, farmers and food companies will have the opportunity to, “access the retail market directly at The Belknap Foodshed, and to have their foods featured in on-site restaurants.” 

Another element in the Foodshed’s system is providing the necessary equipment and training to expand the number and capacity of food producers to navigate the food production system. This will increase the diversity of local food offerings. By swelling the ranks of resident farmers, the Foodshed will enhance the local food system through business development opportunities, small plot intensive farming, on-site retail and restaurant entities, and other methods that generate value-added opportunities. Creating new educational and training opportunities will be an essential component of the entire process. 

According to the Macdonalds, the ultimate goal for systematic production and preparation is to deliver clean food into the community. Fresh produce, flowers, and herbs featuring locally made food and other items will be available at an on-site retail space and two restaurants that feature locally produced resources. In this manner, the future of a robust population of “locavores”—people whose diet consists principally of locally grown or produced food—will be assured.

For more information on this innovative, forward-looking program, contact Mary or Gavin Macdonald at 603-279-8600, or by email, connect@belknapfoodshed.com. Be certain to visit their website at www.belknapfoodshed.com.