Michigan Good Food Fund bolsters lending with business assistance aimed at helping food and farm businesses prepare for financing and support they need to thrive.
Inspiring a passionate food community
Our network of food industry experts offers connections and one-on-one consulting to support businesses that do not yet qualify for financing. We host periodic workshops tailored to select geographies or food business sectors. Sign up for our updates to stay in the loop on our latest business assistance offerings.
Consulting
Through our tailored business assistance, we work with food and farm businesses to get the money and support they need to thrive. With us, entrepreneurs don’t just get a loan; they get a long-term relationship with a team that sticks with them as they grow. Topics of support include business planning, financial management, food-safety compliance, marketing, packaging, operations management, and more.
Do you want to be a Michigan Good Food Fund consultant? Email us at info@MIGoodFoodFund.org or call 734.213.3999 x 212. You can also download the application here.
Events
We also host periodic events for all stages of food businesses. These trainings target select geographic communities or specific food business sectors such as grocery retailers, value-added producers, food hub management, or other sectors in the value chain. While some workshops are offered by us, others are done in partnership with other local and statewide efforts. See our Events page for latest offerings.
Referral Network
If you’re a food or farm entrepreneur in Michigan, we want to hear from you. If we can’t provide you with a loan or other financial assistance today, we can help prepare you for opportunities down the road. And we’re always looking for ways to help our Michigan communities connect with—and benefit from—our growing statewide referral network.
While we strive to support all businesses that come our way, not all are ready today. For businesses we are unable to directly help, our goal is to connect them to other resources that can help their business succeed. This could include skill-building information, other funding sources, or introduction to experts in the field.
For a primer on funding sources for food-related businesses, check out this resource compiled by fund partner Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems.
Business Assistance Leads
Our growing team of business assistance providers includes Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems and Fair Food Network. Fair Food Network’s focus is grocery retail and good food entrepreneurs; the Center’s focus is production, aggregation and distribution, as well as agricultural and protein processing projects.