Page 25 - The EDGE Winter 2022

FOOD SERVICE

BY RICK HALL
Purchasing in Today’s Market – Flexibility,

Fortitude and Facilitation
Rick Hall

As I sit to write this article, I reflect on the friendly and support our community is by
unparalleled challenges school nutrition purchasing items grown or manufactured in our
professionals continue to face. Most of our city or state. By purchasing food and other goods
schools opened this school year with students that are produced locally you help the economy in
attending in person. With the continued which you live. Jobs are created or retained, the
waivers to provide free meals for all children, community gains revenue, families and cultures
many programs are reporting increases in are supported, and we thrive and grow.
participation.
“Purchasing locally also means
While we are excited and still welcome the
increased participation, this year the supply that you have a large influence in
chain and labor challenges are making it quality control – you know that
difficult to complete day-to-day operations. We certain goods have been produced
all try to make the best purchasing decisions by
choosing products or businesses that are local, in a way that meets strict regional
cost effective, and environmentally sustainable. and national standards.”

Buying locally might help ease the stress, but it
may not be the overall solution. Purchasing locally also means that you have a
large influence in quality control – you know
Some 50-60 years ago, there weren’t many that certain goods have been produced in a way
options for buying products other than locally. that meets strict regional and national standards.
Our parents and grandparents ate vegetables When purchasing goods from out of the country
grown in their gardens and often bought their it is difficult to know the manufacturing
clothing, tools, and other goods from people in processes and potentially harmful chemicals
their home town. and byproducts involved.

Today’s globalized market fulfills our needs Additionally, sourcing locally can help reduce
by delivering goods that are either unavailable costs associated with your goods, such as
in our own communities or are cheaper to buy packaging or transportation. Imagine the
elsewhere. While our comfort to get anything amount of greenhouse emissions put into the air
from anywhere and delivered to our door is a by delivering a few cases of oranges from town-
testament to human ingenuity, it also bears to-town verses across the nation or globe.
consequences – both environmentally and
socially. Certainly, it takes less gas, therefore putting
fewer greenhouse emissions into the air.
We always hear the best way to be environmentally Remember that local items tend to have higher

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