Making food a local affair

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) – Getting people to eat local and help local businesses is an idea that is catching on, but where do you go to find home-grown products, and where do you go to get help starting your own business?

If you were looking to start a business the first place you'd think to go would probably not be the First Baptist Church in Kalamazoo, but that's exactly what some people are doing to make their dreams a reality.

"My business idea is to print on chocolate, where it's a 100 percent edible image, I can take your picture, put your face on a chocolate coin or lollipop, it's used for gift favors," said entrepreneur Paul Miller.

Miller wants to make chocolate, and he's hoping the church's kitchen can do it.

"I thought about getting my own commercial space, but that's a whole lot more money," said Miller.

So instead, a space at the First Baptist Church, known as the 'can-do kitchen' is going to be his base. Coordinator Michael Gregor says the 'can-do kitchen' has incubated food businesses for two years, giving people what they need but can't afford when they're first starting out.

"You don't have to build your own kitchen, so we do a low cost, low risk environment to get started," said Gregor.

From the large sinks, pots and pans, mixers and utensils, the 'can-do kitchen' has it all, and is commercially licensed so food made there can be sold.

While the kitchen helps entrepreneurs, its sponsor, Fair Food Matters, encourages them to use locally grown food, and to sell locally.

"We're trying to make those connections, facilitating a lot of those relationships, whether it's from producer to a retailer, or a customer or grower," said Paul Stermer of Fair Food Matters.

From the 'can-do kitchen' to the 'growing matters garden' Fair Food Matters is focused on getting people to go local with their food choices. The group is literally growing food in the hope that businesses will use the harvest.

"We're trying to reach out to a lot of people, we have already a good base of support here in the community, but what we want to do is expand that base to people who might not know about local food and all the benefits, or might be sitting on the fence," said Stermer.

From the garden to the kitchen, the aim is at making the food people eat a local affair.

"It's a lot about developing our local economy and producing more value-added products here rather than other places to be shipped in," said Gregor.

Many of the people who are looking to get their food businesses off the ground will be showcasing their items during an open house in September, right at the church.

You can find more information about the eat local movement by checking out www.fairfoodmatters.org and www.eatlocalkalamazoo.org.