Models and Inspirations
Before beginning work, we researched existing work and solutions. How have other groups approached food miles calculations? Has someone already produced a local food directory software that we could use?
We found some very useful work. Highlights included:
- Local Harvest,
http://www.localharvest.org
A comprehensive directory of local food sellers for the United States, presented through a sophisticated web interface. - Farm Fresh Atlas,
http://www.reapfoodgroup.org/atlas/
An atlas in Wisconsin. - Checking the food odometer: Comparing food miles for local versus
conventional produce sales to Iowa institutions,
http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/pubs/staff/files/food_travel072103.pdf
A detailed methodology for calculating "food miles".
These and the other sources we found provided invaluable guidance; but they didn't do everything for us! The existing softwares (e.g., that of Local Harvest) weren't publicly available, and available food miles studies were all with small samples. In contrast, we needed a comprehensive dataset that would cover all locally-produced foods. The most-used food miles methodologies were also limited, in that they didn't account for key factors that determine climate change impacts (particularly, transport mode).
So we had our work cut out for us!