Citizens gathered in Easton recently to hear about communities where it is hard to buy food, dwindling farms and farmland, farmer training and community gardens in the Lehigh Valley.

Lynn Prior, the Director of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chapter of BuyFreshBuyLocal, spoke at the Nurture Center on Northampton Street to over 40 people.

They came to learn about the local food economy and to fill out post-presentation questionnaires designed to let Prior understand the priorities that listeners assigned to aspects of the various aspects of local food supply and distribution.

Prior's presentation was based on an exhaustive assessment of Lehigh Valley's local food economy by local scholars. Prior edited the study.

Loss of farmland in the Lehigh Valley is one of the biggest challenges to the local food economy, according to Prior. Since 1930 the Lehigh Valley has lost 80 percent of its farms and 53 percent of its farmlands. Agricultural land is currently being lost to development at the rate of 3.5 square miles per year a figure Prior says comes from the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission.

With an expected population increase of 146,000 people in the Lehigh Valley over the next 20 years the Planning Commission predicts that 10 of the 17 rural municipalities will become suburban communities.

Farmland preservation has long been a priority in the valley, and Northampton and Lehigh counties have preserved 33,000 acres or 368 farms. However, in 2013 Lehigh County has allotted zero money for preservation, according to Prior, while Northampton County allocated $3.9 million for farm preservation.

Local food production contributes $17 million annually in economic activity, but Prior sees room for that amount to grow.

"If residents spent $10 per week for locally-grown food," she said. "it would generate $100 million in economic growth."

Among the benefits would be increased job growth. Also, with existing wholesale buyers already in place, Prior sees the potential for "food hubs" other factors which would help economic growth and create jobs.

A food hub, according to the National Good Food Network, is "a business or organization that actively manages the aggregation, distribution, and marketing of source-identified food products primarily from local and regional producers to strengthen their ability to satisfy wholesale, retail, and institutional demand."

There are several areas in the Valley that Prior calls "food deserts." These are large neighborhoods where residents do not have easy access to affordable fresh produce. These food deserts include parts of Allentown, Hanover, Northside Bethlehem and Southside Bethlehem and Easton.

Long-term availability of fresh, locally-grown food is threatened by air pollution. At about 142 tons per year, Pennsylvania is second only to Texas as the biggest emitter of carbon dioxide in the United States. On a global scale, Pennsylvania is responsible for 1 percent of the planet's man-made greenhouse gasses. Climate change is a matter of "utmost concern" to food security, according a study edited by Prior.

Attendees had various reasons for attending the meeting.

"I came here initially to learn about growing chickens," said Melissa Killing of Quakertown. She said she is interest in organic food and in protecting herself through improved diet.

Harmony Hancock of Bethlehem said, "It's important to be part of the community discussion on food [sustainability]."

Bethlehem business man Nolan Berlew focused on farming, lamenting that "It is really hard to buy [farm] land."

"With our population level we have unsustainable way of life," said Adrienne Rayna of Bethlehem. "We have to figure out a sustainable way."