ANNMA (Agricultural Neighborhood Network with Motive Aid) is an online community resource for grower database management, food ordering, and automatic, optimal distribution route planning.
ANNMA provides growers and distributors with an independent source of income while minimizing the cost of food for customers. Each individual that participates in ANNMA empowers themselves economically, while developing a sustainable system of food production and distribution within their community.
1 - Growers: Anybody who grows food, even in their backyard, will be able to market their produce through ANNMA. Small farms can use ANNMA in addition to their local stalls and farmers' market events. Each grower will register their harvest schedule with ANNMA, and an allowable daily or weekly pickup time from their location. This will enable part-time (backyard) growers to spend minimal time and money on selling and distributing, while allowing them to maintain their privacy. There is currently no convenient venue for part-time growers. Therefore, an emerging market through ANNMA will allow part-time growers to price their produce to compete with today's supermarket fare. Property owners who would not have previously considered using their land for food production will have an economic motivation to cultivate food for local consumption.
2 - Distributors: In communities with dense, shared agriculture, growers and customers can exchange goods directly without the need for distributors. However, typical suburban geographies, together with the inconvenience of coordinating multiple produce pick-ups from growers with incoherent schedules will make the distributor an essential resource in most communities. Any individual with a means of transportation can register with ANNMA as a distributor. A distributor registers their home location, the payload capacity of their vehicle, and their desired work hours. Each work day, a distributor logs onto their account on ANNMA to see a list of orders available for them to deliver. The first distributor to select an order claims the order. ANNMA produces a route for the daily orders of each distributor that minimizes driving time, and includes produce pickup and drop-off locations.
3 - Customers: ANNMA will provide customers with a means to find the best local fare at the best price. Customers can manage their distributor preferences for the orders they place - customers can select their favorite distributor(s) based on prices, timeliness of delivery, and quality of service. Food selections can be made based on the images and descriptions uploaded to ANNMA by growers, or customers can request a front-door sample market. For a front-door sample market, a customer selects the produce items they wish to sample, and selects a time of day when they will be at home. A distributor will arrive at the customer's front door within the allocated time with the selected produce items to see, touch, smell, and taste.
The following diagram shows how the services ANNMA provides relate to customers, distributors, and growers.
ANNMA facilitates the development of local agriculture, while ensuring that the energy and cost required to distribute food remains sustainable. Local growers are provided with a marketing venue, along with active feedback on the most desired food items. Simultaneously, distributors receive optimized routes that minimize distribution time and the energy required for transportation, while customers are guaranteed a free market medium in which to find the best quality produce and delivery service for the best price.
