A surprising statistic prompted CLF to launch the Legal Food Hub five years ago. In a survey, only 10 percent of farmers reported using legal services as compared with nearly 70 percent of other small businesses. For too many farmers, the legal services associated with starting and running a business can be so costly that they either go without or pay more than they can afford. In the worst-case scenario, they lose their business or leave farming altogether due to these and other financial hurdles.
We launched the Hub to give the movers and shakers in our local food system – our small farmers and startup food businesses and local nonprofits – access to legal services to lower the barrier to entry and help sustain and grow farm and food businesses in New England.
As we celebrate five years of this work, we’re taking stock of the progress we’ve made so far. We’re happy to report that the Hub’s services are making a difference to the over 450 participants we’ve served. In a recent survey of Legal Food Hub participants, we found that most of our participants would not have access to legal services if not for our program. Most of our respondents agreed that the help they received through the Legal Food Hub freed up time and money for their business, suggesting that pro bono legal assistance helped break down key barriers to their success. Our survey also showed that a majority of respondents believed they would not have been able to achieve the same results without the Legal Food Hub.
The evidence shows that five years in, we’ve made an impact for the better – which spurs us to keep working for a more sustainable, just food system in New England.