Throughout the United States, the raising and consuming of locally grown foods is increasing as more and more informed and discriminating consumers avail themselves of the fresh, flavorful, nutritious foods that are once again being raised and produced on local, usually small farms. This interdependence allows consumers and growers to share improved health and financial benefits of quality local production, and for community bonds overall to be strengthened.Homegrown explores this rapidly accelerating phenomenon of local food production and marketing through the eyes, minds, and actions of six small-farm families who have committed themselves to producing locally grown food in Ohio. Why have these families chosen to enter the local-food production economy, what risks and challenges do they face, what satisfactions are they realizing from their participation in local markets and other locally produced food-distribution efforts, and what are the future prospects of their endeavors? Accompanying each of these six chapters is a sidebar that describes an important aspect Ohio's environmental and agricultural history and its suitability for continued agricultural productivity and participation in the locally grown foods phenomenon. Collectively, the essays in Homegrown provide a snapshot of the present status of a fast-moving process as revealed by six active participants in one small geographic region of the country. Read Less