Why Local Matters
Local food has many benefits, such as fresher, more flavorful produce, decreased transportation costs and emissions, building community, and keeping money in the local economy. In 2009, the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission held a series of public meetings to solicit input for the first ever Comprehensive Regional Plan (CRP) for the NIRPC region (Lake, Porter, and LaPorte Counties). During these meetings, one of the common areas of interest centered on local food. The public saw local food as an important part of our region and asked NIRPC to incorporate local food into our comprehensive planning efforts.
A 63 page report of NIRPC’s local food study was published in March 2012 and is available online.
Other local food resources include: