Cooperative Extension Service (CES) professionals who understand the local food system can help foster partnerships between farmers, consumers, distributors, institutions such as schools and universities, community organizers, and businesses/organizations. With this know-how CES professionals can provide education to increase access to nutritious affordable food and education about nutrition and cooking skills, particularly in low income audiences. With a local food systems background, CES agents can help farmers identify and leverage opportunities in local or alternative markets, especially during disruptions like natural disasters or pandemics.

Cooperative Extension Service professionals can play a role in educating stakeholders, facilitating dialogue, and supporting local food policy, systems, and environmental change (PSE). Understanding local food systems parallels the land-grant mission of improving lives through research-based education in agriculture, food, health, environmental sustainability, and community engagement. In short, CES professionals who are experts about local food systems may leverage that knowledge to serve their communities holistically — promoting economic vitality, environmental sustainability, and social and physical well-being.

The Food Connection at the University of Kentucky and FoodChain joined forces to combine their two signature events — Kentucky Local Food Systems Summit and Food Equity & Access Sustains Tomorrow (F.E.A.S.T) — into one multi-day event. In addition to FoodChain and The Food Connection staff (which includes two employees with Extension appointments) other collaborators/supporters were Ouita Michel and the staff of Holly Hill & Co, the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, Kentucky State University, and Tallgrass Farm Foundation.

The 7th annual Kentucky Local Food Systems Summit will took place Wednesday – Thursday, May 21-22,  2025 which was capped off by FoodChain’s F.E.A.S.T. on Friday, May 23. This collaboration was the culmination of seven years of food system development and united national talent with Kentucky changemakers. The planners created spaces for sharing, collaborating, and working toward thoughtful food systems for all. Extension personnel were considered throughout planning and a special workshop group was created so that they could brainstorm solutions to issues surrounding how Extension can incorporate local food systems work, balanced with increasing their networks with other local food systems practitioners throughout the rest of the conference.

Topics included food as medicine, local procurement and institutional buying, trends shaping local markets, infrastructure gaps, and inclusive access. These sessions were aimed at informing and mobilizing action in those areas. One of the most popular breakout sessions was a cooking demonstration featuring locally foraged ingredients that emphasized innovative ways to integrate regional culinary traditions into food system work.

The conference was advertised across all CES channels and was listed in the Kentucky Extension Reporting System to reach Specialists and Associates, CES Agents, Kentucky Nutrition Education Program (KYNEP) Assistants, CES Area/Regional Agents, and all other personnel in all program areas interested in Local Food Systems development and PSE (in addition to other food system practitioners, farmers, chefs, non-profit organizations, aggregators, interested distributors, consumers, policy makers, and educators).

The Summit brought together CES professionals, farmers, chefs, policymakers, food advocates, and institutional buyers, strengthening multi-stakeholder collaboration in Kentucky’s food system. By bringing these local food system stakeholders together the Kentucky Local Food Systems Summit aided in broadening participation across agriculture, the food industry, policy making, and community engagement and development. By allowing for network building across the local food system in Kentucky, new partnerships, working relationships, value chains, and inter-programmatic collaborations were formed. The conference provided interdisciplinary and strategic learning in innovative ways and recognized leaders to provide thresholds for the work that local food system practitioners can strive to meet. Offering this experience to Cooperative Extension Service professionals allowed them to build new ties with experts, gain knowledge about recent trends and applications, prompted brainstorming around amplified access to food and ethical employment throughout the food industry workforce, and laid a strong foundation for programming relevant to their communities.