Rooted & Rising Gala

Central Oregon is growing.

The question is not whether growth will happen. The question is whether our local food system will grow with it.

On April 24th, Central Oregon Locavore publicly launches Phase 1 of a multi-year expansion strategy beginning with a Westside satellite market designed to increase farmer income and expand everyday access to local food.

For the 17 years, Locavore has proven that when communities intentionally support local agriculture, farmers thrive and families gain greater access to fresh, regional food. Now, as our region grows rapidly, we have an opportunity to strengthen that system in a way that benefits producers, households, and the regional economy alike.

Rooted & Rising marks the moment we move from vision to action.

Seats are limited, and leadership positions will be filled prior to the event.

Farmers Are Ready. Families Are Ready. Infrastructure Is the Gap.

In 2025, Locavore paused to take a deeper look at the system we are building. We conducted a full audit of both our producers and our shoppers, asking a simple question: what would make this ecosystem stronger?

The answers were remarkably consistent.

Farmers told us clearly:
“We don’t need more passion. We need more sales.”

Families told us:
“We want more local food, but it needs to be easier to buy.”

In other words, both sides of the market are ready.

Central Oregon has a strong demand for local food. Our region also has an extraordinary community of farmers and producers capable of supplying it. What’s missing is the infrastructure that allows those two forces to meet consistently and efficiently.

Locavore exists to close that gap.

Through this expansion, we capture demand in growing neighborhoods and direct that spending back to Central Oregon farms. Every additional dollar spent through Locavore increases farmer income while strengthening the resilience of our regional food system.

Building that infrastructure requires intentional planning and disciplined capital.

Why a Successful Marketplace Requires Capital

Locavore operates under a commitment that shapes every decision we make:

65¢ of every dollar spent in the marketplace flows directly back to farmers, ranchers, and producers.

That farmer-first model defines who we are.

If Locavore retained a larger margin, we could fund expansion more quickly. But doing so would come at the expense of the very producers our mission is designed to support.

Instead, we have chosen a different path.

Our role is not to extract value from producers. Our role is to return it.

Because of that commitment, expansion must be funded differently. Growth cannot come from squeezing the supply side of the market; it must come from community investment in the infrastructure that allows the system to grow.

When you invest in the Expansion Fund, you are protecting an economic model that prioritizes farmer income while expanding access for families across Central Oregon.

Your investment does not change the percentage farmers receive.

It increases the scale at which that percentage operates.

That is where the leverage lives.

Phase One: A Westside Satellite Marketplace

Capital Requirement: $200,000

The first phase of Locavore’s expansion strategy begins with the launch of a Westside satellite market designed to bring everyday access to local food into one of the region’s fastest-growing areas.

To launch and stabilize this phase, Locavore requires $200,000 in capital investment.

A portion of this funding has already been secured through early leadership commitments. The Rooted & Rising 10th Annual Locavore Gala is the moment we close the remaining gap together.

Proceeds from this celebratory evening will fund:

• Westside market buildout
  • Cold storage and inventory expansion
  • Launch staffing and operational runway
  • Demand capture in high-growth neighborhoods
  • Protection of the 65¢ farmer-first model

This is the first step in a multi-year strategy designed to strengthen the regional food system through disciplined growth:

Test. Measure. Refine. Replicate.

Who Will Be in the Room

Rooted & Rising will convene 160+ business leaders, healthcare executives, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and producers at the Tetherow Event Pavilion.

Farmers will be seated at the tables.
The expansion strategy will be unveiled.
And the Phase One funding goal will be activated through leadership commitments and a live paddle raise.

If you care about the future of Central Oregon’s food economy, this is the room to be in.