LOF brings farmers and healthcare institutions together

In the healthcare sector there is a great need for healthy and safe food. For farmers and market gardeners, short chains and direct sales lines are very interesting. The innovative LOF program brings these needs together by helping farmers to enter the market and healthcare institutions to find the right producers.

In June 2019, the green light was given for the LOF program, which will be partly funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Province of Limburg and partly by the local Rabobanks in Limburg.

The combination of the agro and health care sectors constitutes a first phase in the ambitions of LOF. The goal is to have healthy and as much locally produced food as possible on the workfloor in Limburg, in healthcare, education, sports and the hospitality industry. Every player in the chain is paid a fair price and sustainable investments are rewarded. The LOF programme consists of two parts: the boot camps and the master classes.

Masterclasses

In the master classes, care institutions and the agricultural sector join forces to ensure that as many as possible of the ingredients for the meals in Limburg care institutions come from their own region.
Through the master classes players get to know each other and work together on a healthy and vital province, in which healthy, safe, fresh and sustainable food becomes a matter of course. During the last master class, matches are actively made between participants of the master classes and care institutions in Limburg. After the master classes the pilot phase will start. In the pilot, care institutions and participants will be paired up to ensure that they continue to work together.

Start of the master classes is in November. More information about the master class program and information about participating can be found at www.gezondekorteketens.nl. There are still spots available for participation. To register, please visit www.gezondekorteketens.nl/aanmelden.

Bootcamps

The boot camps are attended by organizations from Limburg that want to be a leader in the field of sustainability, want to stop waste and have a catering facility that serves at least 75 people per day. During the bootcamps, inspiration, feedback, learning, development, out-of-the-box thinking and creativity are central. The focus is on practicality. So it is not just talk; concrete steps forward are taken. A total of eight bootcamps will be organized in 2019 and 2020, starting in November.

More information about the boot camp program >
There are still spots available for participation. Subscribe >

Thanks to the support of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, the Province of Limburg, the Limburg Agricultural and Horticultural Association and the local Rabobanks in Limburg, participation is free of charge for care institutions and farmers.