AMES — The Local Food and Farm Program is looking for a few good ideas that will help put more Iowa-grown products on dinner plates and more money in the pockets of Iowa farmers.

The purpose of the program, established by the Iowa Legislature in 2011, is to increase the production, processing, distribution, marketing and consumption of local food in Iowa. The program also outlines the need to increase profitability and the number of jobs all along the local food chain.

“We would really like to see projects that help establish a new local food business, such as food hubs or collaborative marketing networks, or projects working with beginning, minority or transitioning farmers,” said Craig Chase, who coordinates the statewide program for ISU Extension and oversees related projects at the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture. “Projects that help us better understand what leads to successful farm-to-school, farm-to-institution or school gardens also would be considered.”