A dynamic and varied group of enthusiastic people from across the region spent last weekend at Fireweed Hub exploring how to start or scale up food and beverage businesses in a course with Food Business Coach Mandi Lunan. The course was funded by a Rural Economic Development grant from the BC Government. The lucky dozen and a half attendees came from various walks and stages of life and enjoyed an intense but incredibly informative and enjoyable set of seminars and exercises over the course of Saturday and Sunday. They learned the ins and outs of costing, pricing, branding, labelling, food safety plans, inspections, marketing, networking, wholesaling, bookkeeping, the impact of tarrifs, the changing world of social media, and the challenges unique to operating in small communities.

Mandi will be back, virtually, in the New Year for a couple of webinars on topics that build on the foundation of this weekend.

In the meantime, Fireweed Hub will be rolling out its free one-on-one mentoring program for new local food businesses that are making use of the commercial kitchen at Fireweed Hub.