Whois & Analysis for localharvest.org

Organic food is food produced by methods that comply with the standards of organic farming.

Standards vary worldwide, but organic farming in general features practices that strive to cycle resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity.

Organizations regulating organic products may restrict the use of certain pesticides and fertilizers in farming.

In general, organic foods are also usually not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents or synthetic food additives.

A farmers' market (also farmers market) is a physical retail market featuring foods sold directly by farmers to consumers.

Farmers' markets typically consist of booths, tables or stands, outdoors or indoors, where farmers sell fruits, vegetables, meats, and sometimes prepared foods and beverages.

They are distinguished from public markets, which are generally housed in permanent structures, open year-round, and offer a variety of non-farmer/producer vendors, packaged foods and non-food products.

Community-supported agriculture (CSA; sometimes known as community-shared agriculture) is an alternative, locally based economic model of agriculture and food distribution.

A CSA also refers to a particular network, or association of individuals, who have pledged to support one or more local farms, with growers and consumers sharing the risks and benefits of food production.

"Local food", "local food movement" or "locavores" are a movement which aims to connect food producers and food consumers in the same geographic region, in order to develop more self-reliant and resilient food networks; improve local economies; or to have an impact on the health, environment, community, or society of a particular place.

The term has also been extended to include not only the geographic location of supplier and consumer but can also be "defined in terms of social and supply chain characteristics." For example, local food initiatives often promote sustainable and organic farming practices, although these are not explicitly related to the geographic proximity of producer and consumer.

U-pick or Pick-your-own (PYO) farm operations are a type of farm gate direct marketing (farm-to-table) strategy where the emphasis is on consumers doing the harvesting themselves.

U-pick is often preferred by consumers who like to select fresher, higher quality, vine ripened produce at lower prices.