Running A Food Hub: Lessons Learned from the Field

Running A Food Hub: Lessons Learned from the Field

Overview

In recent years, several surveys—including the 2013 National Food Hub Survey and the Food Hub Benchmarking Study—have collected data on U.S. food hubs. What seems to be lacking from the current research on food hubs is information on operations and “lessons learned” from those involved in starting and operating food hubs. To help fill this void, interviews were conducted with the leaders of 11 food hubs, using an open-ended, free-flowing format. This allowed for maximum flexibility during each interview and the ability to further capture the unique nature of each entity. The food hubs, located throughout the United States, represent a diversity of organization types, product offerings, operation structures, and missions.