A working brief on the local food system — where we are, what's at risk, what's possible, and where CommonTilth fits in. Backed by primary sources, updated as the network grows.
Real-time snapshot of the network. These numbers update as farms register, volunteers join, and the community board fills with activity.
Live from the CommonTilth database. Browse the directory →
Connecticut has real agricultural infrastructure and a population dense enough to support short supply chains. That's not nothing — it's the foundation this work is building on.
Connecticut's agricultural legacy is real. The state has more farms per square mile than most of the Northeast, a well-developed farmers market system, and a growing institutional buyer base — hospitals, universities, and public schools increasingly committed to local procurement. The state is also small enough that a farm in Woodstock is rarely more than two hours from any population center. Short supply chains are structurally possible here in ways they simply aren't in larger states.
The pieces exist. What's been missing is connection infrastructure — a way for buyers to find producers, for neighbors to coordinate surplus, for the network to see itself. That's the gap CommonTilth is designed to fill.
Connecticut imports the vast majority of its food. The farms that do exist are aging and under pressure. Food insecurity is concentrated in cities with the least access to local alternatives.
The disconnect between production and consumption is stark. Food insecurity is highest in cities with the least access to local food channels — Hartford (24.6%), Waterbury (23%), Bridgeport (22.5%), New Haven (22.3%). These are communities where the gap between what's grown nearby and what's actually accessible is widest.
Farm succession compounds the vulnerability. With average operator age approaching 60 and a third of farms run by operators over 65, the question of who farms Connecticut's land in 2035 is urgent. Without better connection infrastructure, transition is harder — young farmers can't find land, buyers don't know which operations are coming up for sale, and communities lose productive acreage when a farm closes quietly.
The pressures on small farms aren't local — they're structural. Consolidation at every level of the food system is making it harder for independent producers to survive, and more brittle for communities that depend on it.
Supply chain consolidation means that disruption at one node — a meatpacking plant, a distribution hub, a single corporate buyer pulling out of a region — cascades rapidly. The efficiency of consolidated systems is real, but so is their fragility. Communities with no local alternative food infrastructure have no buffer when the system strains.
Climate disruption adds a compounding layer. Flooding, late frosts, and irregular growing seasons are already affecting New England farms. The operations most likely to adapt are those with diversified markets and direct buyer relationships — exactly what local network infrastructure helps build.
The conditions for building local food resilience in Connecticut are more favorable than the vulnerabilities suggest. The infrastructure gap is real — but it's a gap that can be closed.
The primary barrier to local food market development isn't supply — it's visibility. Buyers can't find producers. Farmers can't reach institutions. Neighbors don't know who has surplus. CommonTilth's function is removing that friction, with no barrier to entry on either side.
The community board is designed for the scenarios that test a food system: a farm with excess and no buyer, a food bank that needs gleaning partners, a storm that disrupts logistics. These are coordination problems. The more the network is used in ordinary times, the more effective it is when conditions are extraordinary.
With a third of Connecticut farm operators over 65, succession is one of the most consequential food system issues in the state over the next decade. A visible, well-connected network makes farm transitions more possible — next-generation farmers can find operations, buyers can follow transitions, and communities stay connected to land that might otherwise go dark.
The New England Food Vision — a six-state regional planning framework — sets a goal of 30% food self-sufficiency by 2030 and 50% by 2060. Connecticut is currently at roughly 2.7%. Closing that gap requires exactly the kind of producer-to-buyer connection infrastructure CommonTilth is building.
A curated list of grants, programs, and support resources for Connecticut producers, food hubs, and food system organizations. Not exhaustive — but a solid starting point.
Combines the Farmers Market Promotion Program, Local Food Promotion Program, and Regional Food Systems Partnership. Competitive grants with 25% cost share. $26.5M available in 2026.
Helps farmers enter value-added processing and marketing. Increases producer income and creates rural jobs.
USDA NRCS financial and technical assistance for conservation practices on working lands — soil health, irrigation, grazing management, and more.
Competitive grants for farmers, researchers, and educators advancing sustainable practices. Northeast SARE is open to all CT farms regardless of size or type.
Hub for all CT DoAg grants: Farm Transition, Farmland Restoration, Agricultural Enhancement, and Organic Certification Reimbursement (75% back, up to $750).
Matching funds for CT farms and cooperatives to expand, diversify, or improve operations. 2025 round awarded $527,000+ to 29 projects statewide.
CT-specific program funding projects that build supply-chain resilience. Most recent round: $1.476M awarded to 17 projects across the state.
Two tracks: Regenerative Livestock Grants (up to $10,000) and FAST Grants for farmland access and succession support (up to $5,000). Has awarded $2M+ to 351 farmers since 2020.
Open to all farm types and scales in CT and five other Northeast states. Covers marketing, crop production, livestock, urban ag, and climate-smart practices.
Annual grants from $500 (Farmers Market Grants) to $50,000 (Food Access Infrastructure Initiative). Promotes agriculture and food access across the Northeast.
Annual publication summarizing grants, cost-share programs, and tax incentives for Northeast farmers. A useful starting-point overview updated each year.
The data throughout this page is drawn from primary sources. These are the documents and databases behind the numbers — for anyone who wants to go deeper.
The authoritative source on U.S. farm counts, acreage, operator demographics, sales, and structure. CT-specific data updated every five years.
nass.usda.gov/Census_by_State/Connecticut/County-level food insecurity data for all 50 states, updated annually. Source for CT city-level insecurity rates.
map.feedingamerica.org/county/2022/overall/connecticutSource for CT-specific local food spending data, grant awards, farm census analysis, and agricultural program announcements.
portal.ct.gov/DOAG/Press-Room/Press-ReleasesAnalysis of CT farmland at risk of development, including the 55,000-acre projection by 2040 and recommendations for smarter land-use planning.
farmland.org — CT Farmland ReportA six-state regional food planning framework with a goal of 50% food self-sufficiency for New England by 2060. Developed by the New England Food System Planners Partnership.
nefoodsystemplanners.orgCT-based coalition working on food system assessment, policy, and resilience. Valuable source for state-level advocacy context and ongoing initiatives.
ctfoodsystemalliance.comPractical framework for community food system resilience planning. Addresses supply chain vulnerability, local food infrastructure, and emergency preparedness.
Johns Hopkins / GovEx — Food Systems Resilience Planning Guide (PDF)Annual USDA report on food insecurity rates at the national and state level. Primary source for U.S. food access statistics.
ers.usda.gov — Household Food Security 2024Federal analysis of corporate consolidation in meat processing, grocery retail, and seed supply. Source for the concentration statistics cited in the Threats section.
House Judiciary — Food Supply Chain Report (PDF)Peer-reviewed research examining how local food systems performed during COVID-19 disruptions and what structural characteristics confer resilience.
Springer — Food Security, Vol. 12 (2020)