Increasing Prosperity for Small Farms Through Sustainable Livestock Production, Processing, and Marketing

Abstract

This article presents results from a multidisciplinary project that examined whether increased production and processing of livestock for local and regional markets was a feasible economic development strategy in rural areas of northern Idaho and eastern Washington. Currently no substantial, accessible feedlot or U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-inspected processing infrastructure exists in the study area, leading most small producers to sell their livestock at auction with few options for branding their products to participate in higher value markets. The closest substantial processing facilities are a four to six hour drive from the area -farther than most producers are willing to transport their livestock. To assess and overcome these barriers to local and regional markets, we explored the viability of

A Land-Based and Spatial Assessment of Local Food Capacity in Northern Idaho, USA

“…We argued that in this case, the transport costs or environmental costs associated with food distances may be less important than soil erosion benefits in the Palouse region. Land use policy that promotes the conversion of highly erodible cropland from dryland agriculture production to pasture could be linked to additional benefits derived from locally grown food and small farming, which have been found to have strong socioeconomic impacts in recent studies [21,28].…”