Old Mac Donald Had A Supply Chain

Not Mitch Mac Donald, E-I-E-I-O Mac Donald.  Tis the season for farmers' markets here in beautiful downtown Ohio.  I'm easily seduced by the concept of locally produced non-industrial foods.  Never mind that the nice lady from India making amazingly hot curries in her basement isn't exactly a farmer.  Or, that a frightening number of the "farmers" are buying in bulk at Costco and reselling in small batches on the town square.

I do get positively motivated when writers wax lyrical about a return to sustainable small scale farming - and the results can be wonderfully good.  But, thinking about the latest State of Logistics Report, and the realization that logistics costs, even rising, account for a mere 8.3% of the US GDP, made me appreciate that getting vast quantities of food from a relatively small number of "breadbaskets" to more than 300 million consumers makes our food much more affordable than in places that haven't industrialized agriculture.  That's even more important when times are tough.  Then, there's the occasional report that the carbon footprint for lamb from New Zealand is smaller than from a small producer a hundred miles away.

Where's the balance point?  I don't know.  It doesn't seem right, somehow, that only the more affluent among us should be able to enjoy high quality, more eco-friendly, and better-tasting food than the rest.  That could redefine "haves" and "have-nots" - and their relationships in the greater society.  And, the quality-of-life impact of - to pick a number out of the air - logistics costs double those of today for everyone's food doesn't seem right, either.

Maybe we'll find the balance point as agri-industry gets greener in all aspects of operations, and as more Temple Grandin designs are implemented in the meat production segment of the food supply chain.  What do you think?