Genuine Local hosts Grand Opening Celebration
On January 25, 2016 Genuine Local, a new kitchen and culinary incubator space for food entrepreneurs, opened its doors at The Arts Collaborative in Meredith, NH, turning former warehouse space into a specialty food production facility.
Genuine Local’s mission is simply to help local food entrepreneurs succeed. In order to do that, Genuine Local has assembled a wide range of tools and resources, including training, technical support, and regulatory assistance, plus offering access to a network of outside resources that can be specialized to meet the needs of each individual food producer. Genuine Local is also pleased to offer access to collective ingredient and packaging purchasing and assistance to local farms to create value added products.
The incubator was developed by Gavin and Mary Macdonald, founders of The Discerning Palate, via funding through Members First Credit Union. The Discerning Palate, which produces Swineheart’s Signature Sauces, Our Local Table gourmet condiments and Old’s Cool Wild Game Sauces, was one of several local businesses displaced by the closure of a production facility in Keene, NH last fall. Genuine Local recognizes that people care about what is in the food they eat, and that they also care about where it came from and how it was raised or made. Food ingredients also play an important role for many in managing their health and addressing the rising number of food sensitivities and allergies, and Genuine Local’s commitment to quality and transparency is summed up in its tag line, “Clean Food, Honest Roots.” The newly licensed Genuine Local facility houses commercial-grade cooking equipment suitable for a wide variety of food production businesses. Genuine Local offers the facility to self-producers, as well as providing private label production, co-pack services, and a variety of business development resources. So far, the delicious products of three self-producers, one co-pack customer, and two private label customers are being produced at Genuine Local.
“It is our hope that the mix of services and support we can offer through Genuine Local will enable existing and future small food producers to enhance their financial viability, expand their market reach and create additional jobs,” said Mary Macdonald, co-owner and co-founder of Genuine Local. “We are excited to offer our unique “bootstraps” program for all new customers – providing a range of business development tools and assistance for businesses from concept stage to regional expansion.”
Genuine Local invites everyone – especially foodpreneurs, to its Grand Opening Open House.
To learn more about Genuine Local or to schedule a visit if you can’t make the Open House, visit the facility’s website at www.GenuineLocal.org or call 1-603-279-8600.
Mary Macdonald is the co-founder and co-owner of Genuine Local, NH’s newest specialty food production facility and food business incubator located in Meredith, NH.
Genuine Local is committed to supporting small food producers, farmers with a crop surplus, local businesses looking for clean food, our local communities, and providing a venue for nutritional education and cooking classes. Genuine Local’s mission is to establish a production facility that supports its partners with training, technical support, regulatory guidance, introduction to innovative sustainable business practices, and access to collective ingredient and packaging purchasing, all in an effort to enable existing and future small food producers to enhance their financial viability, expand their market reach and create additional jobs. Genuine Local is also pleased to offer its unique “bootstraps” program for all new customers – providing a range of business development tools and assistance for businesses from concept stage to regional expansion!
