a co-op in syracuse.

The above graphic looks at which farms the Co-op buys its
 milk, yoghurt, cheeses, eggs and meats from

For this next phase of studio my group is looking at the local food shed level. I visited a Cooperative that is in walking distance, 40 minutes round trip, of the apartment I rent in Syracuse. I did this out of necessity as well as out of curiosity to see how a community can begin to eat more local.
It is located on the edge of a residential neighborhood that opens up to an open space composed of a park and sports field. When I walked in I was greeted right away and the staff was very friendly and responsive to my questions even though it was nine in the morning. One clerk in particular listed and showed me products that they buy from local farmers the majority being dairy and livestock products. While the co-op generally buys local, some farmers ship food out to Pennsylvania.
While it makes the university area less of a food desert, it is a bit more expensive than your average supermarket. Local in season produce, dairy, cheese and meat are all higher priced but only by nickels and dimes. Upon a recent return I was surprised to find some imported from Mexico vegetables that were out of season.