Twin Cities Startup Week 2017

Hungry for change? Start the morning meeting and hearing from organizations in the Twin Cities building businesses in the food industry to drive social change and job creation. Discover the deep rooted inequalities found in our current food system and meet the local startups who are committed to using food as a vehicle for social change.

This panel and discussion will be moderated by Jeff Dykstra, Co-Founder/CEO Partners in Food Solutions, and feature Michelle Horovitz, Co-Founder/Executive Director, Appetite for Change, Marcus Owens, CEO/President of NEON, Tricia Nelson, Sales Development and Community Relations, FINNEGANS SBC, and Patsy Noble, Senior Program Director, of Urban Roots coming together to discuss the role of food and business in cultivating social justice. Together they will share the impact of their work, discuss the issues happening within our own community, and showcase how startups can play a critical role in continuing to drive this change.

Find your place at the community table, as we come together to ask questions and bring about new ideas to solve one of the most important social justice issues of our time. 
 
Breakfast will provided by Breaking Bread cafe, a social enterprise, as well as feature products from each of the programs highlighted.

America loses up to 40% of its food as it travels from farm to fork to landfill and entrepreneurs and innovators are tackling this problem from all angles. Come for lunch, discussion and a startup showcase highlighting three key themes of food waste: reduce, recover and reharvest.

This discussion, facilitated by JoAnne Berkenkamp, Senior Advocate for NRDC will dive into how solving the problem of global food waste starts with local communities and involves integrated solutions throughout the entire supply chain. Startups and organizations participating include Reinvia, Sofi Taste Kineto, the Cleantech Open’s recently launched Food and Ag vertical, as well as the Agriculture Utilization Research Institute (AURI).

Come hungry, as lunch will be made by local chefs, creating something delicious utilizing products normally thought of as food waste inspired by Dan Barber’s WastED. Intrigued? We know this lunch and conversation will spark possibilities, introduce you to new startups as well as change your perspective on 'waste' today.

The Food and Ag track is led by Grow North, a resource and connection hub for food and agriculture entrepreneurs and the ecosystem. Grow North would like to thank the volunteers and organizations who helped make the entire track possible.  

People today are looking for innovative food products that are organic, local, sustainable and made with authenticity. Yet bringing this to life can be a real struggle for food entrepreneurs as they build their supply chain as well as identify retail partners that will take a chance on them. 

A first of its kind Food Accelerator program launched in the Twin Cities, Maker to Market was created to address these challenges head on. This innovative program did not just offer personalized food business consult, from container shape to culinary support, but also elevated the commercialization process by pairing selected startups with local, small and disadvantaged farmers, subsidized their shared commercial kitchen production time, and guaranteed six months on shelf at Lakewinds Food Co-op's three Twin Cities area stores.

Meet and hear from the leaders behind the Maker to Market Food Accelerator Program as well as the food startups that participated. This event will include a discussion on how the partnership came together, insights and lessons learned from their first cohort as well as a demo and product showcase from the food startups that participated. Program partners will also release details on the 2018 cohort including application release date and some new program offerings!

As attitudes towards food and food production have changed dramatically over the last several years, the world has seen an explosion of innovators and entrepreneurs starting new food and agriculture businesses. Corporations have taken notice and developed internal teams and departments focused on investing in and partnering with startups at ever earlier stages. What does a partnership like this actually look like? How do the two companies work together? What does a large corporation look for in a startup and vice versa?

Hear both sides of the story at this unique panel bringing together leaders from corporate venture groups and the startups they invested in. Speakers include leadership from General Mills’ 301inc and Rhythm Superfoods, Land O’Lakes, Techstars and LocalCrate, and Schwans and trū Shrimp

This panel discussion will kick off the Food and Agriculture Track's 'Crash the Food and Ag Networks' networking Happy Hour. The event program will start promptly at 3:45pm. 


The Food and Ag track is led by Grow North, a resource and connection hub for food and agriculture entrepreneurs and the ecosystem. Grow North would like to thank the volunteers and organizations who helped make the entire track possible.  

Are you a food entrepreneur, brewer, distiller, or next gen farmer? Do you work in CPG or ag? Do you work with, support, invest in the food and ag community? Then come on out and meet and mingle with your community! Minnesota is home to some incredible people working working in food, agriculture and beverage today and we want to bring these groups together to meet, network and connect with one another.

Raise a glass, reconnect, discover a new resource, and meet someone new. Appetizers will be provided and the first drink is free. You will have to do a little networking to get the second...

This event is hosted by Grow North and Phillips Distilling
with additional support from Compeer Financial, Westrock, Midwest Pantry and more to be announced



The Food and Ag track is led by Grow North, a resource and connection hub for Minnesota's food and agriculture entrepreneurs and the ecosystem. Grow North would like to thank the volunteers and organizations who helped make the entire track possible.  

The challenge of feeding the world in new ways is an area of huge growth and opportunity within agriculture. How do we rethink using the land and utilize nature's resources in new and provocative ways? Minnesota's entrepreneurs are tackling these ideas head-on and exploring ways to extend the growing season, increase yields and drive sustainability.  

Join us for an inspiring panel featuring leaders in aqua and aeroponics as they talk about the changing world of agriculture, consumer preferences and the strategic partnerships that are enabling them to scale faster. Panelists include leadership from Urban Organics, Dave Augustine, CEO, Living Greens Farms, and Michael Ziebell, General Manager, trū Shrimp Systems.

This event is sponsored by Avisen Legal PA

The Food and Ag track is led by Grow North, a resource and connection hub for food and agriculture entrepreneurs and the ecosystem. Grow North would like to thank the volunteers and organizations who helped make the entire track possible.  

Have you ever wondered where all of the food startups are making their products? Where are they sourcing ingredients? What does scaling a food business actually look like?

There is a whole world of manufacturing happening in the Twin Cities built to enable food startups to grow and scale their ideas. We don't just want to tell you - we want to show you what's happening.

Come and experience it first hand on a guided bus tour designed to give you an inside look. Your tour guide will be Jim Costello of Costello Solutions with surprise guests.
Additional stops will also include the Local Food District Commercial Kitchen space in NE MSP and more to be announced.

The Food and Ag track is led by Grow North, a resource and connection hub for food and agriculture entrepreneurs and the ecosystem. Grow North would like to thank the volunteers and organizations who helped make the entire track possible.  

Costello Operations Solutions is pleased to host a forum supporting Food Entrepreneurs who are on the Co-Packing Journey. The discussion is especially suited for entrepreneurs looking to grow their company by hiring a co-packer.

We are excited to share our over 40 years of operations experiences with you on topics to include:

• Should you go to a co-packer? 
• How do you find a co-packer? 
• What is a co-packer thinking when they are sitting across the table from you? 
• How do you know what kind of care they are going to give your dream? 
• Building and Maintaining a Relationship (counseling). 
• What to include in an Agreement? 

We will present numerous case studies and best practices. This will be followed up by an extensive question and answer session. Please be prepared to ask a lot of questions!

Is Twin Cities Startup Week blowing you away with all the amazing opportunity in the food sector? Come see what is next in this dynamic industry and celebrate the opening of the first phase of our new commercial kitchen community, 3100.3100 is designed to foster and accelerate the development of emerging brands by offering 24/7 access to their own custom kitchen space. 3100 not only provides the physical infrastructure so difficult for expanding food companies to obtain, but also offers the industry expertise and connections so critical for scalability and growth. 

Join us as we toast the innovative brands that will call this place home and showcase the gemstone of Minnesota’s food system, the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute (AURI). One of the novel ways AURI provides smaller producers the resources of larger brands is through its Sensory Panels, where AURI’s unique team of experts offers valuable input on new products during their development phase, increasing the chance of success in the marketplace.These fun, social events allow experts and the public alike to give real-time feedback around the taste, texture, and visual appeal of new products. 

See what’s on the horizon for Minnesota food and tell everyone that you tried it first at our house. Join us the evening of October 12th at 3100 for our showcase Smash the Senses sensory event featuring AURI - you’ll be glad you did.

*Please use the complimentary valet service located at the front of the building and help us to be good neighbors, by not inadvertently overwhelming the street parking.