LOWVILLE — In the past, when people called Cornell Cooperative Extension of Lewis County looking for food stands or berry-picking locations, community nutrition educator Dolores B. DeSalvo would direct them to producers in Jefferson or St. Lawrence counties.

The Lowville-based extension simply didn't have a list of where all the local producers were or what foods they had available, she said.

Together with her friend Roxaina L. Hurlburt, Ms. DeSalvo hopes to fill the need for a local food guide by September. The two women are assembling a comprehensive guide of local producers for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Lewis County.

Ms. DeSalvo, who is also an Eat Smart New York coordinator, said the list will be similar to publications already issued by neighboring counties.

GardenShare, a Potsdam nonprofit agency, produces a free local food guide for St. Lawrence County, while Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County offers a similar publication.

Ms. DeSalvo had heard of the local food guides being published by neighboring counties, but said she never had the time or resources to compile one for Lewis County before.

Then she learned that Mrs. Hurlburt was participating in the leadership program LEAD New York and needed a community project to fulfill the program requirements.

Mrs. Hurlburt, a partner and director of marketing at Mercer's Dairy in Boonville, volunteered to help compile the local food guide.

"Because of the situation with food in general and the high prices of food, now it's even more important for people to do local," Ms. DeSalvo said.

The project began a month ago with Mrs. Hurlburt investigating how other counties had created local guides.

"We needed to decide how to handle the information once we gathered it," she said.

The women also created a form to collect producer information such as farm or stand locations, products for sale, methods of payment and hours of operation. They titled the project "Local Foods Now!"

Ms. DeSalvo said she has distributed the forms to 16 people but is seeking more producers to add to the list. An initial submission deadline of this Friday has been extended to Aug. 22, she said.

Her hope is that the guide, which will have information on farmers markets, roadside stands, home businesses and retailers, will encourage more Lewis County residents to seek out local foods, reducing their carbon footprint in the process.

"If we can make agriculture grow, that would be a wonderful idea," she said. "It would benefit the local economy."

Once the list is assembled, Mrs. Hurlburt and Ms. DeSalvo plan to make "Local Foods Now!" available online at the Lewis County Extension Web site and, in paper form at local chambers of commerce.

In the meantime, Ms. DeSalvo said she's already discovered new places for local foods.

"I'm amazed myself," she said. "I'm finding out about these people that have roadside stands and I didn't know."

To contribute to the list of local foods, call Ms. DeSalvo at 376-5270 or Mrs. Hurlburt at 771-5185.