The concept

Our aim is to link small and medium sized organic producers in Southern Europe with projects in Belgium such as CSA projects, farm shops, restaurants, independent buying cooperatives of retailers and consumers who want to have access to high quality organic products produced in an artisanal way by these producers.

The Food Hub is not a traditional wholesaler: there is no stock, deliveries are limited and payment is made immediately. We buy from small projects who harvest what we order and who set their own prices.

By bringing these projects together, The Food Hub allows them to reduce transport costs, offers them an attractive economic alternative to traditional sales and creates a streamlined ordering process which, combined with the wide range of products on offer, makes our offer unique in Belgium.

How does it work?

The Food Hub looks for farmers who meet the following criteria:

• Family-owned farms or cooperatives

• Small to medium sized certified organic farms

• Go beyond organic farming practices

• Transparent in all their operations and open to visits

• Charge a fair price

Each week, the farmer has the opportunity to offer products to order, define the quantity available and the price. Not all farmers will have products available every week, especially for dry or specific products such as artisanal cheeses, pasta and oils. For these, farmers will indicate availability once a month to ensure that the order is large enough to justify the shipping costs.

Customers log on to our site on Tuesday or Thursday and see what is available for the week. They place their order within the deadline of 17h. Once this time is reached, we sent the orders to the farmers who harvest and send their products to The Food Hub. The Food Hub then sorts all these orders and delivers them.

Our prices are 100% transparent. The final price results from the amount paid to the farmer plus 15-20%, depending on the product, for the Food Hub's services and the transport costs from the farm to Leuven.