Internet Commerce and Local Foods: Computer Systems

Before you get started with this software, here is an overview and questions you may want to ask first to see if this software will serve your purposes.

The localfoodcoop software is Open Source

• The source code is made available to the general public with relaxed intellectual property restrictions.
• Anyone can use and modify the source. And if they do, they cannot close the source.
• Independent developers can share features back with the community, which has lead to a great deal of collaboration.
• GPL — General Public License — not “free” — osCommerce and the localfoodcoop software are both released under the GPL

Overview of the localfoodcoop Software

1. Administrator sets up on an order cycle
2. Producers add and edit products at any time — inventory, photos, descriptions
3. Admins screen product changes, then make the product changes live to public
4. The order “opens” allowing customers to order. This may last for days or weeks. There is no check-out procedure; items left in the shopping cart when the order closes is considered valid orders
5. After the order closes, producers log in and enter weights and mark stock
6. Route managers remind customers on their routes to pick up their orders
7. Invoice payments posted from previous cycle (this can be done at any time)
8. Customer and producer invoice totals are saved “finalized”
9. Customer and producer invoices generated as PDFs and printed for delivery day
10. Delivery day — producers transport orders to designated sorting locations, volunteers sort the orders, and customers arrive to pick up their orders!
11. Adjustments entered — such as for missing or damaged goods

• Delivery route lists
• Product labels
• Weights can be entered to calculate product price (2.23 pounds of tomatoes)
• Adjustments — taxed and non-taxed
• Membership maintenance, shares can be purchased online
• Aging reports
• Customer balances carried forward and applied to next cycle’s invoice
• Future delivery options — installments, deposits for pre-purchase, items appear on both that invoice and noted on delivery invoice
• Webpages for producers

Overview of osCommerce

• Typical shopping cart, click, buy, and get. Always open.
• Default is one central shipping and payment processing, and one producer
• KS River Valley Brokerage has decided to use it for wholesale buyers and to be a clearinghouse for local products, not processing money
• KS customized features:
• Separate logins for producers
• Producer deals directly with customers

Questions to ask yourselves

• Order cycle system or order always open?
• Who are your buyers?
• Who fulfills your orders — producers direct to customer or co-op the go-between? What kind of distribution system will you use?
• Who will handle the money?
• Will you allow for weight-affected products? (price calculated after order place and item is weighed)
• What kind of financial interface do you want?

Main Differences in Software approaches