This national initiative seeks to renew what is being called the “agriculture-of-the-middle.” This term refers to a disappearing sector of mid-scale farms/ranches and related agrifood enterprises that are unable to successfully market bulk commodities or sell food directly to consumers. Begun as a task force in 2003, the initiative is entering a development phase. The links below will connect you with more information about this work.

Development Phase Leadership

Convening chair:
Fred Kirschenmann, Iowa State University
515-294-5588
leopold1@iastate.edu

Administrative chair:
Steve Stevenson, Univeristy of Wisconsin-Madison
608-262-5202
gwsteven@wisc.edu

Committee Members

Eileen Brady, Ecotrust
(503) 467-0763
eileen@ecotrust.org

Scott Exo, Food Alliance
(503) 493-1066
scott@foodalliance.org

Scott Marlow, Rural Advancement Foundation International
(919) 542-1396
smarlow@rafiusa.org

Rich Pirog, Iowa State University
(515) 294-1854
rspirog@iastate.edu

Robert Simmons, International Certification Services, Inc.
(763) 566-1089
rsimmons@ics-intl.com

Stewart Smith, University of Maine
(207) 581-3174
stewart_smith@umit.maine.edu

Larry Yee, University of California Cooperative Extension
(805) 645-1460
lkyee@ucdavis.edu

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