Caitriona Scully: The Importance of Short Food Chains Community

There are projects that merely transport things from one location to another. This is not the case with the Midwest Bio District Project, where Caitriona Scully’s is working on. It’s a matter of treating everyone along the food chain, from the grower to the food-maker to the neighbour at the table.

The Midwest Bio District helps build short food supply chains (SFSCs). It has now become a larger group acting in concert with Cultivate and Feeding Ourselves. During the interview, Caitriona describes what she has learned from this work, and why having short, close food chains is so important.

A simple concern is the reason for short food chains. Long food chains consume considerable amounts of fuel and that’s bad for the planet. Each additional step (more truck, more warehouse, more stop) results in additional strain. Keeping the chain shorter is one way to safeguard the planet, as well as the people that rely on the safe delivery of their food.

Short food chains aren’t about devaluating food, says Caitriona. It’s just that they are on the opposite end of the spectrum. They facilitate the sharing of that food value with all those concerned in its growing and delivery to us, not with just the people at the top.

That there is a need for the help of fairness to make it happen. Caitriona discusses training for a new type of job (the SFSC advisor). These are people who look after the links in the chain and help fix the imbalance of power, so small producers aren’t left behind.

Adopting more natural and less industrialised techniques to farm the land is a form of land stewardship. Friendly to nature, as well as a friend to biodiversity. This care gives us our reward: healthy land is more resilient to climate challenges, so communities are less vulnerable.

The money comes easily to Caitriona’s mind as one of the most obvious advantages. If a local farmer sells you the food, you’ll be buying local food. It does not go into the pockets of shareholders at a large supermarket far away. It’s close and it assists your neighbours.

Short food chains also help people connect. They bring neighbours together and build community. But we’re in that kind of relationship, and it’s good for our mental health, because the people who grow our food and make it matter more than we realise are small, steady relationships.

Watch the video here!