A Focus on Food Innovation

Chris Baggott

An event next week in Indianapolis will take an in-depth look at Indiana’s rapidly-evolving food entrepreneurship scene. Venture Club of Indiana President Todd Saxton, one of the program’s organizers, says last year’s event drew record crowds and "piqued the interest" of entrepreneurs, investors and producers connected to the "farm to fork" movement. He says demand throughout Indiana and the nation is trending toward reducing the "degrees of separation" between farmers and consumers and it’s important to bring stakeholders together in the same place.

The program will feature a number of speakers, including Husk Foods co-founder Chris Baggott, DinnerCall Chief Executive Officer Gerry Hays, Scottie’s Brewhouse founder Scott Wise, David King from the IndianaGrown initiative and Indianapolis restaurateur Neal Brown.

Saxton says "Indianapolis was once known as the perfect Midwestern test market for chain restaurants – but times have changed, and over the last few years our food scene has been anything but bland. We’ve seen a boom in unique new restaurants led by local entrepreneurs, and a number of new ventures taking advantage of the ‘farm to fork’ movement in innovative ways.

Studies suggest local food industry purchases tallied around $11 billion last year. Saxton adds nine out of 10 firms in the space employ fewer than 50 people, so finding ways to connect all facets of the industry with funding and technology is key.

The Food Entrepreneurship session is slated for October 1 at the Columbia Club from 10:00am to 3:00pm in Indianapolis.

You can find out more and register for the event by clicking here.