FOOD CONNECT SHED
WHY A LOCAL FOOD HUB?
Collaborative, Ethical Food Enterprises
Home to over 20 good food organisations and businesses such as OzHarvest, Food Connect Foundation and Ballistic Beer Co, we are creating a space for the new creative local food economy to collaborate and move the needle on a healthier, fair and regenerative food system.
Shared kitchen space holds many promises for budding food entrepreneurs and growers who wish to value-add their produce. We want to enable efficiency, growth and innovation in the local food market, thereby solving pain points for small food makers. We lease kitchen space to micro-enterprise start-up food makers who specialise in artisan products, with the aim of incubating their business and preparing for growth.
In addition to hiring out space to community groups, the Shed’s commercial kitchen allows ‘kitchen grade’ produce to be processed as value-added products, thereby reducing on-farm waste.
We offer the following features in our commercial kitchen:
Multiple work stations
Professional grade equipment
Shared cold storage, freezer and dry storage areas
Specialised equipment
Shared loading docks for receiving and distribution
Founders
Emma-Kate Rose, Rob Pekin, and Jennifer Le Savéant
E-K, Rob and Jennifer are the co-founders of Food Connect Shed. The idea being incubated within the Food Connect Foundation from the lived experience of running our social enterprise that used the principles of community supported agriculture from 2004-2022. E-K and Rob have been passionately leading the fair food movement in Australia for over 20 years, and Jennifer has generously provided pro-bono support to the vision since 2017.
By coming together, we believe we can achieve big things to ensure a healthy, resilient food system for future generations.
The Food Connect Shed is already a place where the community can connect with our network of local growers and makers, food entrepreneurs can rent space, and the community can hire the venue. Now we want to retrofit it to the highest sustainable design principles in the world.
A Place for Support
Are you a budding ethical food entrepreneur?
The Food Connect Shed is a place where you can grow your food business alongside like minded people, knowing you are supported with the space, suppliers and the equipment to help take you to the next level. We are currently the home to eight local food entrepreneurs, including our original business: Food Connect.
A Place for Community
We’ve hosted hundreds of events over the last thirteen years – from film festivals to weddings. We’re keen to grow this side of the business by hosting events, parties, meetings, workshops and co-working spaces.
‘A local economy that works for all is possible’
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