The Grow National program is a new pathway for food, beverage and agri businesses in the start up and scale up journey that builds capability and networks at all levels enabling them to grow into sustainable, profitable businesses.
Please submit an Expression Of Interest for the Grow National Program in 2024
Program Elements
Seed to Sprout (One Day Workshop )
Ripe & Ready (10 week program)
DESIGNED FOR:
Food, beverage and agri business startups looking to turn their fledgling businesses into a viable operations. Or already established businesses wanting to get F&B business fundamentals answered.
Introduction
This program consisting of a one-day workshop, online menu and post workshop support, is designed for small food, beverage and agri businesses and outlines the fundamentals required to operate a successful F&B business. Created by industry specialists, with presentations from leading retail experts and passionate local businesses – participants will hear practical and actionable advice on topics including:
Workshop Topics
- Product: Defining target consumer and your product’s USP
- Production: Navigating permits, licences and certifications
- Packaging / Labelling: Packaging 101, barcoding and what’s needed on the label
- Pricing: Price points to achieve margins for the business and distribution & retail partners
- Promotion: Key channels and strategies to raise brand awareness
- Pitching: Understanding what a retailer / distributor needs to see in a product pitch
- Partners: Accessing grants, R&D opportunities, new product innovations
This program is also designed to be a pathway for the Ripe and Ready Program.
DESIGNED FOR:
Established food, beverage and agri businesses looking to scale their distribution, production and market access beyond their current operations.
Introduction
This program will be held over a 10 week period and will be broken into two streams. Created by food and beverage industry specialists, with presentations from leading experts and national businesses – participants will hear practical and actionable advice on topics including:
Workshop Topics
- Your why
- Getting the most out of the program
Food and beverage product development topics
- New product development
- Scaling manufacturing production processes
- R&D process
- Packaging
- Pitching / Pricing
Business Growth and Scaling topics
- Advance financial management
- Legal, contracts and IP
- Distribution and Export
- Advanced promotions and marketing
- Investment Readiness and scaling
NOTE: The information outlined above is not final and subject to minor changes.
Grow Coastal 2017-2019
The Grow Coastal Food Innovation Accelerator program ran for three years (2017- 2019) under the auspice of the University of the Sunshine Coast Innovation Centre and funded by Advance Queensland.
The Food and Agribusiness Network (FAN) was the key Program Partner during this time providing the critical link to industry. In the second and third years of the program, FAN also delivered the program management services.
Over three years, Grow Coastal assisted 37 local businesses and 54 co-founders (70% female). The program has been a catalyst for success with the three year aggregated economic metrics demonstrating 51 new jobs generated (147% growth), $2.935M in new capital invested, revenue growth of 21% and customer growth of 121%.
Since 2019 FAN’s membership and operating model has expanded with sub clusters established in Noosa, Sunshine Coast and Moreton Bay. Demand for capacity and capability pathway programs continues to surpass ability to deliver programs due to funding constraints.
With food & agriculture a key contributor to economic growth in the regions in which FAN operates, it is timely that FAN evolves Grow Coastal in 2023 – into Grow National with new funding partners.
Grow National leverages two significant upcoming opportunities presented to our industry namely
- Buy Queensland 2032 procurement for 2032 Brisbane Olympics
- Turbine Australia’s first collaborative F&B manufacturing facility
Grow National will create a pipeline of Queensland businesses that have the capability and capacity to leverage the Buy Queensland approach around procurement for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics
Grow National will create a commercialisation pathway that also raise awareness of collaboration opportunities across Turbine ecosystem’s range of capabilities and provide industry training on overcoming barriers and achieving scale through contract manufacturing.
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