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Schnucks bolsters local produce sourcing with partner Foodshed.io

Blockchain-based platform helps connect small-scale farmers to area buyers

Russell Redman

June 25, 2020

2 Min Read
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The partnership will help Schnucks build on its current relationships with farmers as well as establish new ones.Schnuck Markets

Schnuck Markets has partnered with logistics and marketing platform Foodshed.io to purchase more than $5 million of locally sourced produce and other goods.

Under the agreement, announced Thursday, 112 Schnucks stores in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa will be supplied with fruit, vegetables and other items from farms within reach of the St. Louis-based retailer’s market area. A mobile marketing app and logistics solution, Foodshed.io connects small-scale farmers to chefs, supermarkets and institutional buyers to create local supply chains in a 250-mile radius.

“Like Schnucks, these local farms have been feeding families and nourishing communities for many generations,” Mike Tipton, vice president of produce at Schnucks, said in a statement. “Our continued support of local farms allows us to also provide the best quality and freshest produce to our customers who have supported us for more than 80 years.”

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Foodshed.io uses blockchain technology, route optimization and realtime updates to bridge gaps in local sourcing. The St. Louis-based company said that, for farmers, its platform helps provide access to urban markets and enables them to respond to local demand and opportunities. Meanwhile, for buyers, Foodshed.io said its technology streamlines and aggregates inventory from multiple farms, creating a more efficient, reliable market where they can place all of their orders.

Related:Schnuck Markets’ EatWell to make debut next week

Foodshed.io connects small-scale farmers to chefs, supermarkets and institutional buyers to create local supply chains within a 250-mile radius. 

For Schnucks, the partnership with Foodshed.io will help the grocer build on its current farmer relationships and establish new ones. Foodshed.io noted that its platform also will bring more sourcing flexibility to Schnucks as it continues to operate under the coronavirus pandemic, which disrupted supply chains across the grocery industry.

“With the advent of COVID-19, it’s more important than ever to support the local supply chain and local farms during these uncertain times,” according to Dan Beckmann, CEO of Foodshed.io. “Schnucks and Foodshed.io are committed to bringing the freshest seasonal produce from farms located no further than a five-hour drive from any one Schnucks store, ensuring customers are receiving the freshest local product possible.”

Foodshed.io started out in New York City and then — after participating in the St. Louis-based Yield Lab Incubator, as part of the Ag Tech Innovation community — the company shifted to the St. Louis area.

Related:Despite coronavirus, retailers keep produce supply fresh

“We are proud to be working with a family-owned and operated company like Schnucks to bring one of the most innovative platforms for local sourcing to the five states they serve,” Beckmann stated. “Being afforded the opportunity to establish a clean, safe, reliable, fresh and local supply chain with these amazing family farms is an honor and a privilege.”

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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