Overview
Diverse and locally adapted food enterprises can improve access to healthy food, offer a better deal for farmers, engage and build community connections and strengthen local economies. It is in our common interests to develop effective tools and platforms that support and strengthen many more of these!
While food enterprises that prioritise fair, sustainable and healthy food are proliferating, many face significant barriers and transaction costs from administration and IT.
The Open Food Foundation arose because there is a large amount of ‘reinventing the wheel’ in food projects that are often on very tight budgets to start with. We think this can do done better if we do it together. This first supported project aims to develop a very flexible system that can be used, adapted and connected to many other systems.
We are completely committed to open source software: if code is closed then we cannot learn and build on each others' ideas. Every local food coop, hub, CSA has a different context and needs, and they need to be able to freely adapt. No one has 'the answer' to how we are going to be able to re-localise food systems, support sustainable farmers, reduce greenhouse emissions AND provide good, affordable food to everyone - so we're hoping that those of us trying (all around the world) can build on each others' ideas, challenges and successes.
Free and open source means "free as in free speech not as in free beer" - there is no prohibition in charging money for the use of open source software. For this project, there is likely to be a membership requirement or charge for: advanced features, customisation or supported services to hosted or advanced uses of the platform. However, the code-base here will always be free in all senses of the word!
This code is made available under the GNU Affero General Public License, which is designed specifically to extend the GPL for network software. "It requires the operator of a network server to provide the source code of the modified version running there to the users of that server. Therefore, public use of a modified version, on a publicly accessible server, gives the public access to the source code of the modified version."
There are (at least) four good reasons to focus on interoperability and plugin-ability as early as possible:
- Avoid Reinventing Wheel: There are lots of things that other people do really well and so we don't need to build them (or can leave until much later when we're really sure that it's needed)
- Flexibility: there are lots of new things being developed all the time and we want to be able to work with them and evolve our capability
- Legacy: people doing this kind of stuff (food enterprises) often have their own systems that they have good reasons for wanting to stick with - we want them to be able to connect with other enterprises through this kind of platform, whilst maintaining the systems they are familiar with using
- Non-Core: we spend all our time thinking about food systems, other people spend all their time thinking about other things . . and are much more likely to know how to do them better (e.g. accounting; ERP; logistics; social networking.
For more detailed information on the Development process, look here.
If you want to have a play around with the software in action (with test data), you can use the demo server here.
- This demo contains de-identified data from real activity in November 2012 i.e. it works and we're using it to buy, sell and move food.
- However, it is also the version that we use to do user testing on latest functions and upgrades, so please tell us if something doesn't work.
- All feedback, feature extensions etc also appreciated!
- Feel free to do whatever you like (create accounts / orders etc) - just don't use paypal or you will pay! (needs to be active so we can test it's working before we push through to production)
The system has been designed and piloted in Melbourne, Australia. Testing and development is continuing with our network here.
We are also building up a list of people and organisations interested in trialling the system when it's ready for roll-out - which we are planning to be October 2013 or thereabouts
If you are interested in being an early test case (trying out the system in your region) and would like to be part of a network of regions doing so, get in touch at hello (@) openfoodnetwork.org or join the mailing list