Food Hubs: Definitions, Expectations, and Realities

Abstract

There is general agreement that food hubs are principally regional food aggregators/distributors well positioned to fill a number of social roles and services not traditionally provided by wholesale food companies. However, there is little agreement among stakeholders about what these roles and services should be or understanding of how they affect food hub financial viability. This article uses 2013 National Food Hub Survey data to highlight the current divergence between expectations and realities of these food hub roles. A definition for food hubs is also proposed that is inclusive enough to embrace different types of food hubs yet prescriptive enough to provide clarity on the roles food hubs play.

KEYWORDS:

• food hub
• definitions
• food systems
• values

Additional information

Funding

Funding for this study was provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the C.S. Mott Endowed Chair in Sustainable Agriculture at Michigan State University.