Building the Central Illinois Food & Farm Economy, June 28

The Edible Economy Project invites you to attend “Building the Central Illinois Food & Farm Economy: The Economics of Local Food Production,” a community leadership presentation by nationally recognized local food economist Ken Meter.

Tuesday, June 28 at 8:00 a.m.
Astroth Community Education Center–Room 2210
Heartland Community College
(1500 West Raab Road, Normal)

Ken Meter’s presentation will cover key findings from a recently completed economic impact analysis of farming and local food production and consumption in a 32-county area of Central Illinois, including Bloomington-Normal, Springfield, Champaign-Urbana, and Peoria.  Mr. Meter is a nationally recognized economist and one of the leading food systems analysts in the United States. He has conducted economic analyses of food and farm economies in over 45 regions in 20 states across the United States.

This analysis focusing on the Central Illinois region reveals that our current food and farm economy effectively exports large amounts of wealth away from the region, while our residents spend substantial amounts of money on food imported from elsewhere. Mr. Meter will demonstrate how our region has the opportunity to significantly boost economic development, create and retain wealth, and provide Illinois residents greater access to fresh, affordable, locally produced foods.

Please join us and other community leaders for this special presentation. Light local food dishes will be served.
Space is limited, so please RSVP by June 22 to Doris at doris.zehr@heartland.edu or (309) 268-8163.

 

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