[media-credit name=’JAKE NAUGHTON/Herald photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]Wisconsin residents will soon be able to shop at their local Farmers' Market from the comfort of their own home.

The state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection recently set aside nearly $30,000 for the development of the nation’s first online ordering site for Farmers' Market shoppers.

The website, which is scheduled to launch in the spring, will allow shoppers to browse products, learn more about the specific farms their food is coming from, and place orders that can be picked up at their local Farmers' Market.

"We feel strongly that people are hungry for food with local roots," said Robin Engel, spokesperson for the DATCP. "This project, by making it more convenient for people to get their food from the Farmers' Market, will help local farmers stay in business and make a profit."

The idea for the project began when GreenLeaf Market founder Heather Hilleren was shopping at her local Farmers' Market and couldn't get the produce she wanted because the farmer had sold out.

"A chef was in front of me and he literally bought everything, and the farmer just packed up and left," Hilleren said. "If he had ordered ahead of time, the farmer would have gotten more sales."

Hilleren added that the website will have advantages for both shoppers and farmers.

"Everyone would benefit from a system where people could just look online and order ahead of time," Hilleren said. "I definitely think the growers will benefit most because I hear from a lot of them that they’re trying to figure out exactly how much to bring to the Farmers' Market."

The DATCP hopes the project will help reduce waste, which, according to Engel, is a significant problem with fresh produce.

"The promise of the website, and one of the reasons we're so excited about it, is that it will help match supply and demand more efficiently," Engel said.

The DATCP hopes this website will bring benefits to local communities as well.

"For every dollar spent at a farmers' market, several other dollars are spent at other businesses, so there's a ripple effect in the economy," Engel said. "It also keeps dollars circulating in the local community."

But Don Wambles, president of the National Farmers Market Coalition, has doubts about the benefits of an online website.

"I don't see how it will reduce waste," Wambles said. "Whether [the farmer's] got it pre-sold or whether he goes to market and sells it is one and the same."

Despite his reservations, Wambles still remains open-minded about the project.

"I would not say, 'Don't use it,'" Wambles said. "Give it a shot and see how it works."

Engel said the website is expected to increase sales at the Farmers' Market by 5 percent in the first year of the project, which could potentially have a ripple effect in local communities of close to $1 million.