Rural Food Access

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The North Central Regional Grocery and Food Hub Initiative is a multi-year effort to strengthen rural food access in North Dakota by building a more resilient, locally driven food system. The initiative brings together independent grocers, local producers, and community partners to explore shared solutions for purchasing, distribution, and local food integration—reducing reliance on distant supply chains while supporting small businesses, expanding market opportunities for local foods, and keeping dollars circulating in rural communities.

This work is supported by a $12.6 million grant commitment from the Bush Foundation. The initiative is led by the Rural Development Finance Corporation (RDFC), with staffing and coordination provided by the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives (NDAREC) Rural Development Center.

A key component includes a donated facility in Velva that will serve as a shared storage and distribution hub—receiving and combining grocery orders for small-town stores while also aggregating and shipping local farm products—aimed at improving access to fresh, healthy, and affordable foods through collaborative purchasing and distribution.

Project Updates and Information

Vision, goals and original framework for the North Central Regional Grocery and Food Hub Initiative (Sept. 2025)

South Central Rural Grocers Cooperative

The South Central Rural Grocers Cooperative, serving Ashley, Strasburg, Hazelton, and Zeeland, is implementing a shared-services model to strengthen rural grocery sustainability. The cooperative enables participating stores to share marketing, coordination, and leverage the co-op's distribution system to wholesale their locally made products to other member stores.

Stores in the co-op were approved in 2026 by a wholesale distributor for a requested delivery day change to pilot additional joint purchasing opportunities, delivery coordination, and expanded services to schools and other customers.

NDAREC is providing ongoing staff support, assisting with organizational development, coordination among participating stores, and strategic planning as the group works through startup challenges. The stores remain committed to improving purchasing power, expanding fresh food offerings, and strengthening long-term food access for their communities.

Photo: South Central Rural Grocers Cooperative Board of Directors stand beside the co-op's grocery distribution van - from left: Vice President Mitch Kramer, Strasburg; President Kirk Rueb, Ashley; Alternate Terri Rueb, Ashley; and Secretary-Treasurer Beverly Voller, Hazelton.

Rural Access Distribution Co-op

Visual representation of the Rural Access Distribution (RAD) Cooperative's purchasing and delivery system

Walsh County Map Park River is the dedicated redistribution hub. By redistribution, we mean in and out the same day – it is not a warehouse.

Hoople and Edinburg are communities with small, existing grocery stores. One is independently owned, and one is community-owned. Park River, Hoople and Edinburg will place their orders collectively and the order will be delivered to Park River by the supplier. This step does not require any investment. Park River has adequate sorting space and space to hold frozen and refrigerated foods during the sorting and pre-delivery time period.

We have been able to document an average 14% price difference on wholesale food products between stores 15-20 miles from each other simply based on volume. This collective purchasing increases the total volume, improving the price for all communities. It will also help improve variety as stores will be able to partner in the purchase of cases at a volume discounted price.

Adams is a community without a grocery store. The community is interested in a climate-controlled grocery locker system. This system includes lockers that hold ambient, frozen and refrigerated products, an online ordering software system and a climate-controlled delivery truck. The people in Adams would be able to place their orders online via a credit card transaction to Park River. Park River would deliver the products to the locker and send either a text or email message informing the customer the product has been delivered and assign them a code. The customer can go to the lockers, enter the code, and the assigned doors pop open. Once the product is picked up, the store receives confirmation the transaction is complete.

Fordville is also without a grocery store. A community member is interested in a climate-controlled grocery locker system. Fordville could simply join the collective purchasing group rather than worrying about attracting a supplier. Again, the increased volume would benefit all.

By including the locker system in the redistribution hub, we will bring one small store online, we will have a delivery truck for the hub, and we will possibly bring healthy food access to two small communities without.

We anticipate this could also be a way to hub local foods. Suppliers of local produce, bakery items, inspected meat or other items could deliver products to the hub to have them delivered on the same truck as the conventional wholesale products. There could be other business partners, for example a local pharmacy.

Sources of Loans & Grants for Rural Grocers

Resources Available to Connect Local Growers and Grocers

Additional Resources

Meetings & Activities

About the Walsh County Distribution Hub

Project Updates