As part of our commitment to Economic & Community Betterment, last year we supplied a grant to The Community Foundation for Muskegon County (CFMC) for the Food, Agriculture, Research, and Manufacturing (FARM) business accelerator. A collaboration between CFMC, the West Michigan Food Processing Association, Muskegon Community College, and Greater Muskegon Economic Development, this food processing incubator and accelerator works to address challenges facing the industry. Their target audience includes middle and high school students, future and current food processing employees, as well as entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Ottawa County has a thriving agricultural industry that includes over 170,000 acres of land that produces $534 million in products annually. Food processing is critical to this region and industry.