Sedgwick County Kansas (population 523,824) is located in south-central Kansas. Its county seat is Wichita, the most populous city in the state. The Health & Wellness Coalition of Wichita has […]
Shagbark Seed & Mill tackles the burgeoning local foods movement head-on within the Ohio ecosystem. Since their launch in 2010 by the Appalachian Staple Food Collaborative, Shagbark has focused on […]
Damian’s Craft Meats (DCM) provides on-farm animal processing services for producers in southeast Michigan. Demand for Damian’s processing services has far outpaced the company’s capacity since opening in 2014. It […]
The Central Shenandoah Valley, population 368,000, is a large geographic area spanning 4,264 square miles in western Virginia. The region includes seven counties—Augusta, Bath, Highland, Page, Rockbridge, Rockingham, and Shenandoah—and […]
The Good Food Collective (GFC) aims to build a vibrant economy, steward natural resources, and support the physical and cultural health of the Durango, Colorado area by investing in the […]
The City of Wichita (pop’n 390,000), located in Sedgwick County, Kansas, is in the south-central part of the state. For the past 20 years, the Health and Wellness Coalition of […]
The Linn County Food Systems Council has ambitious goals to improve Linn County’s food system from production to consumption in order to build resilient supply chains that feed the community […]
The Great Plains Food Bank serves every county in North Dakota as well as western Minnesota, working with community partners to efficiently secure and direct resources and eradicate hunger in […]
The Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people, with a reservation located on 65,000 acres near Green Bay, Wisconsin. The tribe works to offer programs, services, and […]
In 2021, the Whatcom County Food System Committee conducted a community food assessment that pointed to key opportunities to build a more robust and resilient regional food system. New Venture Advisors partnered with Whatcom County staff and the Food System Committee to draft a Whatcom County Food System Plan that builds upon these findings. This Plan focuses on five key goals for building a more equitable, sustainable, and resilient food system, and was informed by an inclusive community engagement process. The Food System Plan will provide the county with a policy roadmap that will strengthen the local food system for years to come. (2023)
The Whatcom Community Foundation invests in activities and organizations that improve the ability of people to help themselves, increase connections among people, and take cooperative approaches to community issues. WCF is exploring the development of a local food campus on a waterfront property that would become a multi-tenant site, anchored by a collaborative production kitchen benefitting food access, school system, and community organizations. The goal is strengthening Whatcom County’s local food system by promoting health equity, forging tangible strategic connections between food production organizations, and helping farmers connect with institutional markets. The facility will also feature an incubation kitchen, demonstration kitchen, event and classroom space, collaborative office and conference facilities, and housing. New Venture Advisors developed the business case for this ambitious project and continues to support its development through engagement and operational development. (2023)