On Monday, May 13, from 5 – 6:45 p.m. at Zia Cantina, the La Plata Food Equity Coalition will host the free workshop: “Sourcing Local Food for Your Business.” The aim of the event is to bring together food businesses who are interested in offering more local products with the producers who sell them.
The evening will start with a presentation on local procurement 101: how to get started. Next, a panel of businesses who have demonstrated success sourcing local products will share their knowledge and answer participants’ questions. The evening will end with a meet & greet session where local producers can mingle with food business owners. Stipends are available to participants to help cover the cost of travel, childcare, or whatever people need to help them get to the event. Spanish interpretation will be provided. Please register in advance.
“Food security and economic hardship are pressing issues in our county, especially among our rural and BIPOC residents.” said Erin Jolley, Food Business Workgroup Manager, LPFEC. “The La Plata Food Equity Coalition’s Food Business Workgroup is working to build equitable economic opportunities for underserved entrepreneurs in our county so that everyone can thrive. Supporting food businesses is also an important way we can celebrate the mix of cultures and flavors in our community.”
This event was created in direct response to the needs expressed by local food business owners when the La Plata Food Equity Coalition’s Food Business Workgroup surveyed them. The Food Business Workgroup’s mission is to support economic opportunity and financial security by building and sustaining a food business ecosystem that is welcoming and inclusive of minority-owned businesses, including BIPOC and rural entrepreneurs.
We know that insufficient income is one of the biggest causes of food insecurity, and we know that starting small food businesses is one big way our local BIPOC and immigrant community members provide financial security for their families, as well as foster job growth and cultural representation. Unfortunately, opportunities and resources for starting small businesses are not equitably distributed in our community, and the Food Business Workgroup’s aim is to reduce barriers for underserved people.
Event description & registration
Are you a food business who’d like to offer more local products? Join us for “Sourcing Local Food For Your Business,” a free workshop where you can connect with local farmers, learn how to navigate the local food procurement landscape, and hear from fellow entrepreneurs who are doing this successfully. Elevate your business with locally sourced goods, support your community, and savor the flavors of local entrepreneurship!
Please register in advance. Stipends are available to cover the cost of travel, childcare, or whatever you may need to help you get there. Spanish interpretation will be offered.
Register at https://www.goodfoodcollective.org/event-details/sourcing-local-food-for-your-business
About the La Plata Food Equity Coalition:
The La Plata Food Equity Coalition (LPFEC) is enhancing health equity for and with La Plata County BIPOC, Senior, and Rural Residents through healthy food access and shared community leadership. We are composed of individual community members, community groups, organizations, agencies and institutions who are committed to collaborative leadership and centering lived experience. Our work is focused on systems change, with an emphasis on shifting mental models, power dynamics, relationships & networks, policies, practices, and resource flows. To learn more, visit www.goodfoodcollective.org/lpfec