As part of the partnership with Wholesome Wave, Coastal Enterprises Inc. will launch a two-year feasibility study to identify the best ways to integrate Maine seafood into the northeast regional food hub system and make it more widely available to consumers.? Wholesome Wave, a national non-profit dedicated to linking local food producers to underserved communities, recently met in Portland with CEI to discuss the new venture. CEI?s Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems Program has been working with Wholesome Wave for the past year in an effort to deploy $3 million from the U.S. Treasury?s Healthy Food Finance Initiative into local ?food hubs.?
?In the current movement to support locally produced foods and rebuild local and regional food systems, the emphasis to date has been primarily on agricultural products. Seafood is not well-integrated into these discussions and efforts,? said Ron Phillips, CEI?s Founder and President.? For over 35 years, Maine-based CEI has been supporting the fishing industry through lending, business counseling, advocacy, fostering creative partnerships, working waterfront preservation, aquaculture development and encouraging environmentally sustainable practices.
CEI?s Fisheries Project staff now has a role in the ongoing partnership with Wholesome Wave to conduct the local seafood distribution feasibility study. ?Our hope is that by looking at the existing patterns of seafood production, destination, and use we can investigate viable alternative distribution plans in collaboration with agricultural products. There is huge potential in creating efficiencies, stabilizing markets and developing new job opportunities within the entire distribution system,? said Hugh Cowperthwaite, CEI?s Fisheries Project Director.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture? defines a ?food hub as a centrally located facility with a business management structure facilitating the aggregation, storage, processing, distribution, and/or marketing of locally/regionally produced food products.? Wholesome Wave was recently awarded a $568,000 multi-agency Rural Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge grant by the USDA and US Department of Commerce?s Economic Development Administration.? The Innovation Accelerator Challenge is a national initiative to support rural partnerships that support small businesses and farms by leveraging local assets and creating long-term economic growth in their regions.? The funding will allow Wholesome Wave?s Healthy Food Commerce Investments team to support ?healthy food hubs? through capacity building; increasing access to financing; and providing technical business assistance and planning.
?We have developed a powerful collaboration with CEI in order to invest in healthy food hubs,? says Daniel Ross, Wholesome Wave?s Chief Financial Officer. ?Getting Maine seafood into New England food hubs will generate economic development and healthy food systems not just for the Maine seacoast but also for business throughout the region.
About Wholesome Wave
Wholesome Wave is a national 501(c)3 organization dedicated to supporting small and midsize farmers, and making fresh, healthy, locally grown fruits and vegetables available to all people, regardless of income. Wholesome Wave partners with farmers markets, community leaders, healthcare providers, like-minded nonprofits and government entities to implement programs that benefit both consumers in underserved communities and the farmers who provide for them.
About CEI
CEI is a nonprofit organization that provides rural business financing, technical assistance and policy advocacy for small and medium sized companies that create jobs, improve the economic development in their areas, or offer environmental benefits. CEI has financed over 2000 businesses, created or preserved more than 26,000 jobs, and manages nearly $800 million of invested capital.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Ralph Loglisci
443-722-0555
ralph@wholesomewave.org
Grace Cleaves
207-632-7693
gfc@ceimaine.org
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