Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on LawnStarter.
Where in America can you easily find farm-fresh food?
LawnStarter ranked the best cities to buy local food.
We compared the 500 biggest U.S. cities based on four locavore categories. More specifically, we factored in access to u-pick farms, on-farm markets, and local dairy farms. We also considered local food movement chapters like Slow Food USA and Buy Fresh Buy Local, among 21 total metrics.
Shop at your local farmers market and cook up a 100-mile meal with inspiration from our ranking below. To learn how we ranked the cities, see our methodology at the end.
15. Minneapolis, MN
- Overall Score: 27.99
- Access Rank: 26
- Convenience Rank: 16
- Support Rank: 45
- Interest Rank: 49
14. Madison, WI
- Overall Score: 28.36
- Access Rank: 92
- Convenience Rank: 5
- Support Rank: 13
- Interest Rank: 128
13. Vancouver, WA
- Overall Score: 28.54
- Access Rank: 19
- Convenience Rank: 20
- Support Rank: 38
- Interest Rank: 25
12. Boston, MA
- Overall Score: 28.74
- Access Rank: 7
- Convenience Rank: 114
- Support Rank: 35
- Interest Rank: 54
11. Hillsboro, OR
- Overall Score: 29.02
- Access Rank: 14
- Convenience Rank: 18
- Support Rank: 59
- Interest Rank: 85
10. Somerville, MA
- Overall Score: 29.25
- Access Rank: 2
- Convenience Rank: 168
- Support Rank: 151
- Interest Rank: 336
9. Philadelphia, PA
- Overall Score: 29.42
- Access Rank: 24
- Convenience Rank: 9
- Support Rank: 39
- Interest Rank: 42
8. Chicago, IL
- Overall Score: 29.98
- Access Rank: 5
- Convenience Rank: 197
- Support Rank: 7
- Interest Rank: 18
7. Beaverton, OR
- Overall Score: 31.38
- Access Rank: 9
- Convenience Rank: 26
- Support Rank: 33
- Interest Rank: 46
6. Frederick, MD
- Overall Score: 31.86
- Access Rank: 45
- Convenience Rank: 4
- Support Rank: 10
- Interest Rank: 256
5. Seattle, WA
- Overall Score: 31.88
- Access Rank: 4
- Convenience Rank: 49
- Support Rank: 41
- Interest Rank: 32
4. Washington, D.C.
- Overall Score: 34.30
- Access Rank: 10
- Convenience Rank: 37
- Support Rank: 1
- Interest Rank: 49
3. Baltimore, MD
- Overall Score: 34.36
- Access Rank: 23
- Convenience Rank: 2
- Support Rank: 2
- Interest Rank: 57
2. New York, NY
- Overall Score: 37.22
- Access Rank: 3
- Convenience Rank: 22
- Support Rank: 15
- Interest Rank: 5
1. Portland, OR
- Overall Score: 45.66
- Access Rank: 1
- Convenience Rank: 8
- Support Rank: 9
- Interest Rank: 4
Methodology
First, we determined the factors (metrics) that are most relevant to rank the Best Cities to Buy Local Food. We then assigned a weight to each factor based on its importance and grouped those factors into four categories: Access, Convenience, Support, and Interest. Here are the factors:
- Value of State’s Agricultural Sector Production adj. to Population
- Local Dairy Farms
- Local Farm Stands
- Number of U-Pick Farms
- On-Farm Markets Within 50 Miles
- Local Food Hubs Within 100 Miles
- Number of Marinas
- Butcher Shops per Square Mile
- Bakeries per Square Mile
- Craft Breweries per Square Mile
- Wineries per Square Mile
- Local Stores, Restaurants, and Farms Offering Sustainably Certified Products
- Local Food School Programs
- Ranking in LawnStarter’s “Best Cities for Urban Gardening” Study
- Local Farms Offering On-Farm Pickup
- Local Farms Offering Delivery
- Number of Slow Food USA Local Chapters
- Has “Buy Fresh, Buy Local” Food Local Chapter
- Agricultural Workers per 100,000 residents
- Number of Agri-Tourism Businesses
- Local Google Search Interest
For each of the 500 biggest U.S. cities, we then gathered data on each factor.
Finally, we calculated scores (out of 100 points) for each city to determine its rank in each factor, each category, and overall. A city’s Overall Score is the average of its scores across all factors and categories. The highest Overall Score ranked “Best” (No. 1).
The analysis did not include farmers markets, farm-to-table restaurants, co-ops, and grocery stores selling local products due to a lack of national data.
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