Open Food Network
Open Food Network (OFN) is a not-for-profit organisation that is building what is needed to create a fair, local and transparent food system. OFN's open source platform enables new, ethical supply chains by making it easy and efficient. Food producers can sell online, wholesalers can manage buying groups and supply through networks of food hubs and shops. Communities can bring together producers to create a virtual farmers’ market, building a resilient local food economy.
Additionally, OFN produces resources, conducts research and runs events and projects that help community food enterprises thrive.
Completed Project - Funded in March, 2022 ($117,400)
Sustainable Table has funded Open Food Network to further develop its online platform to support the growth of regenerative food supply networks and increase their impact. They are pioneering the establishment of an open and easily interoperable ecosystem of regenerative food supply network solutions.
This will help regenerative farmers and food hubs to strengthen their businesses by:
- Selling fresh, local produce online
- Reducing their costs and administrative overheads
- Reaching a wider customer base
- Forming connections and sharing knowledge with other values-aligned businesses
- Participating in short-supply chain food systems
The project’s key objectives:
- Enhancing the Open Food Network public infrastructure offering with API endpoints that make Customer and Product data available/connectable. Using the Open Food Network in Australia, these new endpoints can be used to prototype tools and solutions that provide immediate value to farmers, producers and food hubs. Examples of what is possible include:
- Customer notifications and alerts (email and SMS) for events such as the store being open, orders being ready, delivery notifications, payment reminders and order cycles being about to close.
- Bulk application/ removal of discount codes, making it possible to run targeted marketing campaigns.
- Customer analytics to make it easier to see your regular customers and who have not purchased anything in a while.
- Ensuring that our development roadmap is focused on the features and functionality that is important to farmers, producers and food hubs. The Open Food Network will be undertaking a pulse check to identify the features and functionality that will have the most value for farmers, producers and food hubs.
- Develop and launch a new product offering for Open Food Network in which we use this new Open Food Network infrastructure (API endpoints) as the base for timely, flexible and affordable customised tech solutions for Australian farms and hubs.
Completed Project - Funded in February, 2023 ($10,000)
We are seeing an emergency situation in the community food enterprise (CFE) sector as a result of cost-of-living pressures (fewer buyers, spending less) and long-term lack of funding for the public good value they create. Open Food Network will lead a "rapid needs and value assessment" project for the sector, to inform a collective bid for funding/support from both government and philanthropic sectors for Victorian community food enterprises.
CFEs are an essential component of a healthy, sustainable, regenerative, and just food system. Their loss risks increasing food insecurity, job insecurity, and reduced motivation for regenerative farming. Gathering evidence of needs will position the CFE community to be able to collectively and individually seek critical capacity funding from philanthropy and government.
The project’s key objectives:
- Organise and present easily accessible impact data for collective and individual funding bids.
- Directly support ~5 CFEs to hold a small gathering/celebration of achievements (e.g a low key lunch event).