Coordinator: Aliza McHugh

What is “Farm to Institution”?

Farm to Institution (F2I) is the broad concept of farms selling their goods to institutions in order to increase access to local foods, shorten and strengthen supply chains, and improve farm viability. Popular examples of F2I are farm-to-school and farm-to-hospital, but institutions also include universities, government facilities, corporate cafes, and carceral facilities.

In Oregon, these institutions serve over 100 million meals per year.

Farm to Institution helps build a more resilient food system and connects communities by fostering collaboration and cooperation between farmers, food service buyers and workers, and eaters of all ages and backgrounds.

What is the Oregon Farm to Institution Collaborative (OFIC)?

OFIC is a statewide network of producers, institutions, and organizations coming together across Oregon’s geography and food system to cultivate support for farm to institution projects.

As a collaborative, OFIC works to build long-term resilience into the food system by positioning farm to institution as a means of enhancing equity and creating new market opportunities through addressing issues of local value chain coordination, land access, and relationship development.

The working group provides networking and educational resources to producers, institutions, and organizations engaged in institutional sales, local food systems, and food access initiatives. In addition to helping illuminate the benefits of farm to institution initiatives and navigate implementation throughout the supply chain, OFIC promotes values-based procurement policies that are rooted in equity, transparency, economic viability, environmental stewardship. This includes working to develop common language and purchasing standards.

OFIC was established in 2023 by a partnership of more than 16 farms, organizations, and agencies, including Health Care Without Harm, Oregon Department of Agriculture, Mudbone Grown, and the Oregon Farm to School and School Garden Network, to build upon existing farm to institution initiatives and expand beyond the Portland Metro region, particularly into rural areas.

Our Vision

Oregon-grown, raised, and processed foods from local farms, fisheries, and businesses served in all institutions across the state.

Our Mission

To create and sustain a network of relationships between Oregon's agricultural producers, organizations, and institutions that supports local food purchasing, creates new markets for food producers, and improves food and nutrition security statewide.

Our Purpose

Connection | Education | Transformation

To leverage the power of local food for a healthy, equitable, and resilient regional food system.

How To Get Involved

OFIC is a free membership-based network for producers, institutions, and organizations engaged in healthcare, local food systems, and food access across Oregon. 
 
By joining as a member, you receive access to:

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Shared communication channels
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Virtually organized meetings and working groups

Invitations to events for the F2I ecosystem

Resources and materials available to members only


Key focus areas of our work include value chain coordination, convening an institutional community of practice, and conducting research around land access and shared assets.

You can join the OFIC email listserv (aka Google Group) by simply sending an email to oregon-farm-to-institution-collaborative@googlegroups.com. Sending this email will automatically ask you to opt-into the Google Group. Once you have joined the Google Group you will receive meeting calendar invitations, resources and other communications from network members and you can send emails to the list.

Materials

Resources

- Gorge Farmer Collective: A co-op for Gorge producers, serving institutional markets in the Gorge and Portland Metro areas.
- Klamath Grown: A food hub out of the Klamath basin.
- Agricultural Connections: A food hub serving institutional markets in Central Oregon.
- Lane County Bounty: A food hub serving institutional markets in Lane County.
- Oregon Organic Coalition: A membership-based trade group (501(c)(6)) that brings together folks from every corner of Oregon’s organic industry.
- Oregon Farm to School Network: Brings together educators, producers, and school nutrition staff to create a thriving local food system.
- Kitchen Sync Strategies: Helps small farmers and food hubs tap into institutional wholesale market channels.
- Agriculture Producers’ Toolkit: Bringing the Farm to School / Traer la Finca a la Escuela: Herramientas para Productores Agrícolas
- Kitchen Sync Strategies: Provides institutional food service groups the support needed to meet values-based purchasing goals.
- Farm to Institution New England’s Food Service Toolkit .