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The farm-to-table movement in the United

States has grown in recent years, as consumers

have increasingly demanded locally sourced

food. But in the past several weeks, the

movement has grown out of necessity because

some producers can’t rely on the complex web

of processors, distributors and middlemen to get

food to customers.

For some, the challenges have turned into

opportunities — and new customers.

“When restaurants reopen, we’ll probably keep

doing home delivery, because we’ve got a good

base of customers,” Pray said.

But it’s not good news for many of America’s

food producers. In late April and early May,

U.S. beef and pork processing capacity was

down 40% from last year, according to Jayson

Lusk, head of the department of agricultural

economics at Purdue University. Plants are now

mainly back online but at reduced capacity with

beef and pork plants running about 10% to 15%

below last year, he said.

Some sectors have also suffered reductions

in value, in part because the restaurants they

normally rely on are closed. Live, 1.25-pound

lobsters were worth $6.74 per pound in the

Northeast in April, which was 13% less than a

year ago and 37% less than two years ago.

“The two biggest problems are facilitating

distribution throughout the supply chain while

protecting worker health, and revamping food

demand in a way that avoids further disruptions,”

said LaPorchia Collins, a professor in the

Department of Economics at Tulane University.

Before the pandemic hit, Gunthorp Farms in

LaGrange, Indiana, had been selling most of

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