Many people assume that LocalHarvest is a non-profit organization, probably because of the ".org". We chose to be "localharvest.org" not to confuse people, but because the site was intended to be a service, rather than a business. We wanted the URL to convey 'information' rather than 'commerce.'
In 2002 LocalHarvest incorporated as its own business entity (an S-corporation). Our founder wanted to see if he could create a different kind of business, one that did three things: put its values first in all decision-making, funded itself (rather than being reliant on grants), and made a living for its employees. Becoming an S-corp has allowed more flexibility around those goals.