Supporting and expanding local markets can positively impact farm profitability and create jobs through production, processing and retailing. According to the 2007 Empire State Poll by the Cornell University Survey Research Institute, 78.5% of the New York State residents age 18 and older surveyed buy local foods and 37.4% said they go out of their way to buy local food. Tapping into this market can benefit farmers and consumers directly, but as well, a more localized food economy provides more choice in the marketplace, maintains a working landscape, and reduces the vulnerability of a highly centralized food supply.

The North Country Regional Foods Initiative was started by the Cornell Cooperative Extension Associations of Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties and the Economic Development Administration University Center at Cornell’s Community and Rural Development Institute (CaRDI) to understand and document how local food businesses and activities benefit the northern NY region and identify strategies for enhancing those benefits.

On this website you will find resources  developed to support the goals of this initiative, including:  research based publications about NC local foods, links to on-line tools designed to connect producers and consumers, a calendar of local food events, and links to ongoing local foods work in the North Country.

Specifically, this site contains:

The North Country Regional Foods Initiative Final Report (forthcoming) and Fact Sheets

The Role of Adirondack North Country Foods in Community & Economic Development conference materials

Additional resources including links to local and national organizations and publications on regional and local food systems.

An events calendar with up to date information on ongoing programs, meetings, and market opportunities.

Media releases on regional/local foods in northern NY

To learn more about local food activities in the North Country and be part of a group of people working to support these activities, sign on to cce-nnylocalregionalfoods-l@cornell.edu, a regional list serv designed to help producers, consumers, and communities across NNY work together to achieve local and regional food goals. To subscribe send an email to Bernadette Logozar with the words “Add me to the NNY Local/Regional Foods List” in the subject line.

You can also learn more about efforts to support local foods, including the North Country Regional Foods Initiative or the Northern NY Regional Agriculture Program Direct Marketing/Local Foods team, by contacting any one of the project partners listed below: 

Regional Coordinator
Franklin County
Bernadette Logozar
(518) 483-7403
bel7@cornell.edu 

Clinton County
Anne Lenox Barlow
(518) 561-7450
alb326@cornell.edu

Essex County
Laurie Davis
(518) 962-4810
lsd22@cornell.edu

Hamilton County
Nancy Welch
(518) 548-6191
naw5@cornell.edu

Jefferson County
Rosalind Cook
(315) 788-8450
rlc53@cornell.edu 

Lewis County
Dolores DeSalvo
(315) 376-5270
dbd6@cornell.edu 

St. Lawrence County
Katherine Lang
(315) 379-9192
kaa20@cornell.edu 

CaRDI
Heidi Mouillesseaux-Kunzman
(607) 255-0417
hmm1@cornell.edu