Glossary · Selling

Food Hub

A regional business or cooperative that aggregates product from multiple small farms, handles distribution, and sells to wholesale buyers — bridging farms too small for direct wholesale and buyers too big for individual farms.

A food hub is intermediary infrastructure: a regional operation that buys from many small farms, aggregates and sometimes processes the product, and sells to wholesale buyers (restaurants, grocers, institutions). The USDA's formal definition emphasizes the hub's role in strengthening local/regional food systems.

For small farms, food hubs are often the bridge to wholesale channels that would otherwise be out of reach — the hub handles the cold-chain logistics, food-safety audits, invoicing, and buyer relationships. The farm gives up some margin but gains reliable volume and simplified operations.

Related Terms

Wholesale (Food)

Selling food in bulk to intermediaries — restaurants, grocers, food hubs, distributors — rather than direct to end consumers. Lower per-unit pricing, higher volume, simpler logistics.

Cold Chain

The unbroken refrigerated handling of perishable food from farm to consumer — critical for food safety, shelf life, and quality.

Direct-to-Consumer (D2C)

Selling food directly from producer to end consumer — at a farmers market, farm stand, CSA, online store, or delivery — without wholesale intermediaries.
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