Food System 6 Accelerator Announces Cohort Focused on Regional Food Security

The Food System 6 Accelerator announced the nine companies that make up their 7th cohort of food system leaders today. The incoming group exemplifies the response efforts that emerged from the COVID-19 crisis and features for-profit and nonprofit solutions focused on food equity and security, worker-ownership, regional food infrastructure, open-sourced technology, and closed-loop manufacturing for food and agriculture. As with all FS6 cohorts, Cohort 7 was selected for their work across the four FS6 impact pillars of Healthy People, Vibrant Farms, Sustainable Ecosystems, and Justice & Fairness.

The cohort includes the following companies:

• Farm to Pantry: Gleaning fruits & vegetables that would otherwise go to waste and sharing it with food-insecure families across Sonoma County.

• the FarmHand tractor: The open-source tractor solution for today’s small sustainable market farms.

• Ferry County Edible Resource Team: Supporting the next generation of sustainable farmers to build a more resilient and prosperous Ferry County, WA

• Kitchen 66: Decreasing barriers for Tulsa’s food entrepreneurs through business training and operational support.

• Nafici Environmental Research: Transforming agricultural waste into paper pulp for packaging through EcoPulping.

• Open Food Network: An open-source, virtual market platform for transparent local food systems.

• Reem’s California: Connecting people across cultures and experiences through the warmth of Arab bread and hospitality.

• Regenerative Poultry Systems: Training and deploying regenerative poultry farmers at scale.

• Umi Feeds: Redistributing surplus food to seniors and the food insecure in Atlanta, GA.

“Now is the time for radical collaboration, courageous challenges to the status quo, heart-driven leadership, and radical candor about the times we’re in,” said Caesaré Assad, CEO of Food System 6. “We are all living together in the climate crisis and together we are capable of being part of a better future. This cohort, along with many other community-based leaders nationwide, are building that better future.”

This group of entrepreneurs has launched into a 13-week accelerator program focused on fine-tuning the communications and business acumen they needed to maximize their impact. The program includes group learning sessions, one-on-one mentor connections with industry leaders and investors, and custom business support. The program will culminate on June 22nd with a public Forum event where food system stakeholders, partners, and investors will have the opportunity to learn from each company about the solutions that they are building. To learn more and register for the event, visit: www.foodsystem6.org/cohort7.

About Food System 6

Food System 6 (FS6) is a non-profit business accelerator whose mission is to support impact-driven entrepreneurs as they transform how we grow, produce, and distribute food. The organization runs a comprehensive program that mentors entrepreneurs by coaching them through a wide range of business and organizational needs. FS6 also works to educate stakeholders on the unique capital needs as related to redefining the food system. The FS6 portfolio includes 52 companies, both for profit and nonprofit, of which 50% are female-led and 43% are BIPOC founded or BIPOC serving. Since Cohort 1 (2016), the FS6 portfolio has seen a 90% survival rate and the portfolio companies have raised more than $30mil in blended capital. Additional information on the FS6 portfolio can be found here: www.foodsystem6.org/portfolio.html.