FEED Kitchens celebrates 9th anniversary
By Chris Brockel
NPC Director of Food Systems
On Nov. 15 FEED Kitchens will celebrate its ninth anniversary functioning as the premier food business incubator/shared kitchen in our region. During those nine years FEED Kitchens has played a vital role in helping shape and sustain Madison’s vibrant local food scene. From beloved food carts to familiar products on sale in local stores and farmers markets, FEED Kitchens allows local food producers to grow and flourish by providing access to equipment and entrepreneurial support, especially to populations that have traditionally been shut out of these services. Currently, FEED Kitchens’ business members are 66% people of color and 54% women -owned.
Operating as a nonprofit as a program of Madison Northside Planning Council, the journey through the past nine years hasn’t always been easy but the tenacity and will to succeed of the staff and entrepreneurs at FEED have led to numerous successes for our region. FEED Kitchens has graduated nearly 20 businesses and we are anticipating announcing two more graduates by the end of 2022. A Northside favorite, Beef Butter BBQ, is just one of our many graduated businesses. Besides adding solid enterprises to our local food scene, businesses operating out of FEED Kitchens have generated over $10 million dollars in revenue that is cycled through our local economy, have created well over 200 jobs, and have helped bolster and solidify our local food system making us less dependent on supply chain disruptions. FEED Kitchens also functions as a host for non-profit and community initiatives with Thanksgiving senior meals, FEED to Go hot meals during the pandemic, and social enterprises like Off the Block Salsa/Pizza and Chrysalis Pops.
In celebration of its 9th year, and in preparation for its 10-year anniversary, FEED Kitchens is offering our many friends in the community a special opportunity to support FEED’s work. For a limited time only, anyone is eligible to receive a Local Foods Equity Enhancer Team Membership for only $9.99 a month, or a one-time payment of $99.99 (facebook.com/FEEDKitchens). While very successful at achieving its mission serving the community, FEED Kitchens’ goal to maintain accessibility means it generates little surplus revenue for maintenance, repairs, upgrading the facility or expansion needs. Margins are thin for member businesses so appealing for community support helps us keep rates affordable so we can continue to serve this vulnerable group of entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurial interest in starting food businesses has really skyrocketed since the pandemic and FEED Kitchens’ has really come into its own. It’s an exciting time with so many new businesses making this their business home. It’s important for us to keep pace with upkeep of the facility so we set ourselves and our members up for ongoing success for the next 10 years. Signing up to make recurring monthly donations or a one-time donation to support facility maintenance and needed upgrades. One-time or recurring donations of any size are genuinely appreciated and can be made by:
Visit FEED Kitchens’ donation page https://feedkitchens.org/contact/donate/
Send a one-time or monthly check to FEED Kitchens
1219 N. Sherman Ave.
Madison WI 53704