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 […]
With food shortages exacerbated by the pandemic, the Biden administration has announced a flurry of initiatives and funding opportunities to increase resiliency in food supply chains. Tucked into these announcements […]
Over the past several years, scholars in planning and public health have increasingly called attention to inequities in the food system. One recent article that caused us to reflect on […]
Recently, New Venture Advisors presented to the Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation for Health Community Health Academy. The Community Health Academy is a learning collaborative of mayors and city leaders […]
New Venture Advisors is privileged to work alongside powerful forces driving progress toward building food systems we can all be proud of. These forces—our collaborators, partners, clients, visionaries—are leaders in […]
Food systems are made up of people engaged in creation, commerce, and community from production to consumption. For any food business, policy, or plan to be viable, it must take […]
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 […]
A Food System Plan, as defined by the American Planning Association, is “a set of interconnected, forward-thinking activities that strengthen a community and regional food system through the creation and […]
As communities mature in their food systems work, they often recognize that they need a roadmap to guide their work more strategically. We’ve heard from communities big and small across […]
New Venture Advisors supported Whatcom County staff and the Food System Committee in developing the Whatcom County Food System Plan, a 10-year roadmap for a more equitable and resilient food system. NVA led plan development, community engagement, and cross-sector strategy, integrating agriculture, fisheries and marine harvest, processing, distribution, and access to strengthen the regional food economy. (2023)
Whatcom Community Foundation continues to partner with New Venture Advisors to guide the development of the Kitchens@Millworks —a bold project uniting health, equity, and market access. Building on previous work with the Farm to Freezer program, the team developed an operational model, financial analysis, and partner strategy. NVA is evaluating expansion of farm-to-institution efforts and their potential relocation to the new campus. Advanced financial models support a multi-operator facility encompassing production, aggregation, retail, and community programs. (2026)