Farmers and Makers
Coastal Foodshed partners with over 80 local farmers and food producers across the Southcoast. We help farmers sell their foods to more people by sourcing, transporting, and distributing their products through our core programs, allowing our farm partners to focus on what they do best: growing food and running their operations.
Running a small farm is a full-time job. Reaching customers, managing deliveries, processing payments, and handling wholesale relationships all require time and resources that most small farms simply lack. Large industrial producers have entire teams for these tasks, while local farms do everything themselves. Coastal Foodshed exists to bridge that gap.
Are you a farmer or food maker
looking to sell?
We are always looking to grow our network. If you grow or make local food and want to reach more customers across the Southcoast, we want to hear from you.
Why local farms matter
Farming has shaped the economy, landscape, and identity of the Southcoast for generations. The farms in this region do more than just grow food. They preserve indispensable farmland, support local ecosystems, keep dollars circulating within the communities where they operate, and work to provide their community members with fresh and wholesome foods.
That work faces real pressure. The number of farms in Massachusetts has decreased from 35,000 in 1945 to about 6,000 today. Fourteen percent of the state's farmland has been lost to development over the past thirty years, and roughly 55% of Massachusetts farms earn less than $10,000 annually. For many small operations, the challenge isn't growing food; it's reaching customers who value purchasing local foods.
Coastal Foodshed supports local farms by buying their products at market rates and then identifying and reaching new customers that farmers otherwise cannot reach. We sell local food through our retail store (in-person and online), The Foodshed, the New Bedford Farmers Market, the HIP Delivery Program, the Farm to Food Relief Program, and the Farm to Institution Program. Every purchase made through any of these channels directly benefits local farmers.
Third party distributors are an essential and often missing piece in our food system, filling a role that most farmers cannot, capturing bulk amounts of produce that might otherwise be wasted, and reaching a market customer who is often out of reach for farmers. CFS is doing all of these things.
– Dee Levanti, Ivory Silo Farms, Westport, MA
Heart Beets Farm has been working with Coastal Foodshed since 2019. CFS is now one of our main wholesale buyers and the most consistent. Not only do they help us sell produce, they work towards increasing awareness of local farms. From weekly orders to connecting us with new customers, CFS is pushing local agriculture forward and having a positive impact on our business.
– Steven Murray, Owner Heart Beets Farm, Berkley, MA