Harvest Ready Food Systems Workforce Program

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Executive Summary

Harvest Ready Food Systems Workforce Program is a nonprofit that prepares adults for careers in the food industry. A free 12-week program in a commercial training kitchen teaches food safety, kitchen skills and food production, pays a weekly stipend and ends with food safety credentials and a job coach who works with employer partners.

The food industry has thousands of good jobs that go unfilled, and many people who want them lack training, credentials or a way to start. A person with no income cannot afford twelve weeks of training without pay.

With this grant we will train about 40 adults in Year 1 in two cohorts. We do not promise any graduate a job or a wage, and we never charge participants. We promise real skills, careful safety training and honest help finding work.

Our Year 1 budget is about $240,000, growing to about $300,000 by Year 5 as we add sites, coaches and participants. Each year's budget is planned to balance, with a small surplus each year. We have 5 staff in Year 1 (an Executive Director, a Program Director, an Instructor and a part-time Job Coach) and 7 by Year 5.

We are asking the Southern Food Futures Foundation for $65,000 for the Instructor and participant training stipends. Our other income and startup support cover the rest. These numbers are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end of this proposal, and we do not promise any result beyond what we describe.

Company Description

Harvest Ready Food Systems Workforce Program is a nonprofit organization in Minnesota. We are a registered charity with a volunteer board of directors, a written conflict-of-interest policy and a yearly budget the board reviews.

Our mission. To open good, lasting careers in the food industry to people who have been shut out of them.

What we do.
- Run a free 12-week training program in food safety, kitchen skills and food production.
- Pay a weekly training stipend so participants can afford to attend.
- Teach food handler and food safety certification and other credentials employers ask for.
- Provide hands-on work in a commercial training kitchen and at partner food businesses.
- Match each graduate with a job coach and an employer partner.
- Follow graduates for a year after placement.

Our values. Respect for every participant, honesty with families and partners, safety first and a place for everyone who wants to belong.

What we do not do. We do not promise any graduate a job or a wage. Stipends are reviewed by an attorney and an accountant and are not wages. We follow all food safety and workplace rules. We never charge participants. We follow the rules of our partner sites and our insurer.

How we got here. A group of chefs, food business owners and a workforce counselor began teaching evening kitchen skills classes in a church kitchen. Graduates found work quickly and employers asked for more. We kept simple records of who finished and who was hired. This proposal asks for support to move from evening kitchen classes to a steady program with paid, trained staff and the materials to match.

Problem & Opportunity

The food industry has thousands of good jobs that go unfilled, and many people who want them lack training, credentials or a way to get started.

Cost. Culinary school costs thousands of dollars, and a person with no income cannot afford twelve weeks of training without pay.

Access. Many entry-level food jobs offer low pay and little advancement, and people do not know the paths to better positions.

Safety and trust. Employers want workers who know food safety and show up reliably, and funders want training that leads to real jobs.

Missed benefits. People without training stay in the lowest-paid jobs, and employers have a hard time finding skilled workers.

What we hear.
- A chef says he would hire ten people tomorrow who knew food safety and showed up.
- A man says he has cooked at home all his life and has never had a certificate.
- A mother says she cannot afford twelve weeks without a paycheck.
- A graduate says her first week as a line cook was the first time she felt proud of her work.

We do not claim that a program can solve every challenge. We believe that skills, a stipend and an employer who is ready to hire can open a career in food.

Products & Services

Harvest Ready Food Systems Workforce Program gives adults who are unemployed or underemployed a safe, welcoming place to train for and find good work in the food industry.

How the program works.
1. Recruitment. Workforce centers, shelters, reentry programs and community groups refer applicants.
2. Orientation. A coach meets each applicant, explains the program and agrees on goals.
3. Training. Twelve weeks of classes four days a week in a commercial kitchen, covering food safety, knife skills, cooking methods, production and customer service.
4. Stipend. Participants receive a weekly stipend for each week they attend.
5. Credentials. Participants earn a food handler card and a food safety manager certificate.
6. Placement. A job coach works with employer partners to place graduates in kitchens, food production and distribution.
7. Follow-up. We call graduates at 30, 90 and 365 days.

What a typical session looks like. Participants arrive and check in with a staff member, settle in together, work on the day's activity in small groups and finish with a short talk about what went well. Staff praise effort, correct mistakes kindly and make sure no one is left out.

Staff. Our instructors are working chefs and food safety professionals who pass a background check, complete our training in teaching adults and are paid for their time.

Access and fairness. Programs are free. The program is free. We welcome every adult who is ready to work, including people with a record, as the law allows.

Market Analysis

Who we serve. Adults ages 18 and older who are unemployed or underemployed in our area and want a career in food. Eligibility is based on readiness, commitment and income guidelines our board sets, and no applicant is turned away for lack of experience.

How we estimate need. We cannot count every young person who could benefit, so we plan from what we can see. In our evening classes we served a full kitchen and kept a waiting list. Employers told us that they cannot fill entry-level and supervisor positions as fast as they open. For Year 1 we plan to serve about 40 participants at 1 sites. By Year 5, with more staff and sites, we plan to serve about 120.

Where participants come from.
- Workforce centers and career coaches.
- Shelters, reentry programs and veteran groups.
- Churches and community centers.
- Graduates who tell a friend.

Who else benefits. Employers gain trained workers. Families gain stable income. Communities gain a stronger local food economy.

What the numbers mean. Every number here is a graduate with her first chef coat. We keep our early counts modest and honest so we can do the work well.

Competitive Landscape

What young people can find today, and how we are different.

1. Culinary schools. Excellent and costly. We offer a free, short, paid alternative.

2. Community college programs. Valuable and long. We prepare people to continue.

3. On-the-job training. Useful and hard to enter without experience.

4. Workforce center classes. Offer many services and few hands-on kitchen hours.

5. Online food safety courses. Provide a card and no skills practice.

What makes us different.
- Free with a weekly stipend.
- Twelve weeks in a real commercial kitchen.
- Food safety credentials built in.
- Employer partners who hire graduates.
- A year of follow-up.

Why this gap matters. Existing programs do good work, and most serve people who can already pay or who live close to them. The people we serve are the ones left over: they live in the wrong neighborhood, have the wrong schedule or have no one to ask. We are built to reach them.

We have spoken with chefs, restaurant and food production employers and workforce centers to make sure we are filling a gap and not duplicating services. Their letters of support are in the attachments.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How young people and partners will find us.

Reaching young people.
- Workforce centers and career coaches. We will share a short referral form and a named contact.
- Shelters and reentry programs. We will present and share schedules.
- Employers. We will invite them to tour the kitchen, hire graduates and host a shift.
- Churches and community groups. We will talk with leaders.
- Word of mouth. Graduates tell friends.
- A simple website and a phone line with a text option.

Reaching staff and sponsors.
- Recruit instructors and coaches through chef associations, culinary schools and workforce programs.
- Offer an orientation, a background check and training in safety, privacy and respectful practice.
- Give partners a short report each quarter with counts of participants and what they said.

How we decide who joins. We use a simple sign-up form and enroll participants in the order received, with priority for those with the greatest need and for people new to the program. We keep a waiting list when the program is full.

What we watch. Sign-ups, attendance, credentials earned, graduates hired and how many participants return for a second season.

Operations Plan

How the program will be carried out.

Timeline for Year 1:
- Months 1 and 2 (July and August): Hire the staff, buy equipment and materials, finalize the waiver, consent form and privacy policy with our attorney and sign site agreements.
- Month 3 (September): Open applications and begin the first cohort.
- Months 4 to 10: Run cohorts of about 20 with placement support and follow-up.
- Months 11 and 12: Survey participants and employers, report to funders and plan Year 2.

Space. Training is held in a leased commercial kitchen with a classroom and a small office.

Safety and privacy.
- Instructors teach and enforce food safety, knife safety and fire safety, and every participant wears the proper gear.
- Stipends are reviewed by an attorney and accountant and are not wages.
- Every staff member and volunteer passes a background check and completes safety training.
- Staff work in pairs or in view of others whenever participants are minors or in a vulnerable situation.
- We keep an emergency plan at every site, and participants complete an emergency contact form.
- We keep records private, share them only with a participant's permission or as the law requires and follow a written policy.

Equipment. We buy about $16,000 of equipment once at the start: commercial kitchen training equipment ($10,000), knives, small wares and uniforms ($3,000), personal protective equipment and safety gear ($1,500), laptops for coursework and job search ($1,500). Later years replace or add a few items.

Staffing. In Year 1 I serve as Executive Director. The Program Director, paid $46,000 a year, manages cohorts, employers and stipends. The Instructor, paid $40,000, teaches the classes. A part-time Job Coach, paid $24,000, supports placement. We add an instructor in Year 3.

Management & Organization

Chef Andre Williams, Executive Director. I lead the organization, report to the board and am responsible for budgets, partnerships and reporting. I came to this work as a chef who got my start because someone gave me a chance. I will complete the training we require of our instructors so I understand the program from the inside. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Staff. The Program Director manages cohorts, employers and stipends, the instructor teaches the classes and a part-time job coach supports placement. Each passes a background check. These positions are part of our grant request.

Board of directors. Our volunteer board includes a chef, a restaurant owner, a workforce counselor, a banker who serves as treasurer, an attorney and a graduate. The board meets every other month, approves our budget and reviews our safety plan. No board member is paid, and members with a conflict of interest step out of related decisions.

Advisory partners. A food safety inspector, a community college culinary director and a food distributor give guidance twice a year.

Staffing and pay in this plan: Executive Director, paid $52,000 a year; program Director, paid $46,000 a year; instructor, paid $40,000 a year; job Coach (part-time), paid $24,000 a year.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals, how we will measure them and when we plan to reach them.

Year 1 outcomes (July 2027 through June 2028):
- Serve about 40 participants at 1 sites.
- Run at least two full seasons and a summer session.
- Have at least 85 percent of participants attend most sessions.
- Have at least 80 percent of participants return for a second season.
- Receive positive feedback from at least 90 percent of families who answer our short survey.

What we count and how.
- Participants enrolled, sessions and games attended, from our records.
- Skills learned and goals met, from the coach's checklist.
- Equipment issued and returned, from our log.
- Participant and family feedback, from a short, confidential form.
We report what we find, including what did not work, and use it to improve.

Growth over five years.
- Year 2: About 60 participants at 1 sites.
- Year 3: About 80 participants at 1 sites.
- Year 4: About 100 participants at 2 sites.
- Year 5: About 120 participants at 2 sites.

Learning along the way. At the end of each quarter, the director and the board review the numbers and decide whether we are on track. If we are behind, we will adjust our outreach, our sites or our schedule before asking for more money.

After the grant. By Year 5, grants make up about 48 percent of our budget, down from about 65 percent in Year 1, as partners and donors give more. We will keep building those relationships every year.

Funding Request

What we are asking for, and how the money will be used. Our request: $65,000 from the Southern Food Futures Foundation for the Instructor and participant training stipends, for July 2027 through June 2028.

The request is spread across these budget lines:
- Personnel: Instructor salary, $40,000.
- Other: Participant training stipends, $25,000.

Other money in the program. This request is about 42% of our Year 1 grant income. Other grants and the income lines below pay for everything it does not cover.

Year 1 budget: about $240,000, planned to balance with a small surplus (about $9,800 after the yearly wear on equipment). Year 1 money coming in: Grant Revenue $156,000; workforce Board Funding $50,000; employer and Food Industry Partners $24,000; individual Donors $10,000. Year 1 costs: executive Director $52,000; program Director $46,000; instructor $40,000; job Coach (part-time) $24,000; participant Stipends about $24,000; food Safety Certification Fees about $6,000; ingredients and Supplies about $10,000; commercial Kitchen Rental about $12,000; employer Outreach about $4,000; administration and Insurance about $9,000; about $5,600 a year for the wear on equipment.

One-time startup costs. Startup costs of $25,000 are paid once from startup money, not from the yearly budget: $10,000 for commercial kitchen training equipment; $3,000 for knives, small wares and uniforms; $1,500 for personal protective equipment and safety gear; $1,500 for laptops for coursework and job search; $2,500 for attorney review of the stipend agreement, waiver and privacy policy; $1,800 for banners, flyers and a simple website; $1,700 for instructor training and background checks; $3,000 for first insurance payment.

How we got our startup number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds the startup costs ($25,000), the cash the program uses before it balances (about $0) and a cash cushion of about $56,800, which is about three months of Year 1 costs. In all, that comes to $82,000. We start with $8,000 from our founding board and $76,000 in startup support from a community foundation and a food distributor, $84,000 in all, which covers that amount with room to spare.

The next five years. Our budget grows from about $240,000 in Year 1 to about $300,000 in Year 5. Grants are planned at $156,000, $142,000, $170,500, $157,000 and $144,000 in Years 1 to 5. Other income grows: workforce Board Funding from $50,000 to $82,000; employer and Food Industry Partners from $24,000 to $48,000; individual Donors from $10,000 to $26,000. Our surplus is planned at about $9,800 in Year 1, about $10,400 in Year 2, about $13,200 in Year 3, about $13,900 in Year 4 and about $14,800 in Year 5. We grow from 1 sites to 2 by Year 5, adding a part-time coach for each new site.

Savings. We plan to keep several months of costs in savings. The lowest year-end balance in the plan is about $71,400, at the end of Year 1. Some grant payments and partner payments arrive after we bill, so we plan for about $9,600 owed to us at the end of Year 1.

Cost per trainee. In Year 1, our total costs are about $5,755 per trainee served, which includes setting up the program. By Year 5, with more trainee served and a trained team in place, that falls to about $2,377 per trainee.

After the grant. Workforce board funding, corporate sponsors and individual donors grow every year, so grants become a smaller share of our budget. Participants and families share their stories, and businesses can sponsor a team or a season by name. We will look for partnerships with schools and the city that want a safe, free food workforce option for every child.

Risks and how we will handle them:
- An injury. Certified coaches, proper equipment, groups matched by age and skill, a written emergency plan and insurance.
- A site is no longer available. We keep agreements with more than one site and a plan for bad weather.
- A coach leaves. We keep a list of trained backup coaches and share lesson plans.
- Low attendance. We adjust sites, times and rides based on family feedback.
- A privacy problem. We follow a written policy, use secure systems and train every staff member and volunteer.
- A grant ends. We keep savings and grow partner and donor support each year.

If you are just starting. A new organization can begin before it has its own 501(c)(3) status through a fiscal sponsor: an established nonprofit that receives grants for you and passes them to your program, usually for a fee (commonly around 5% to 10% of the grant, sometimes more; ask before you agree). Another way is to start smaller: one neighborhood, a handful of trainees and a small team, tracked carefully. Strong results from a small start make larger grants easier to win.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach with this proposal:

- Your IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter, or your fiscal sponsor agreement.
- Your most recent financial statements and your current year budget.
- A list of your board members and what each one does.
- Signed letters of support from partner schools, agencies and sites.
- Your site agreements and your insurance certificate.
- Your consent, waiver and privacy policy.
- Your safety plan and background check policy.
- Your program outline and schedule.
- Quotes for equipment and materials.
- Resumes for your Executive Director and key staff.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Grant Revenue: $156,000 in Year 1, growing to $144,000 in Year 5.
- Workforce Board Funding: $50,000 in Year 1, growing to $82,000 in Year 5.
- Employer and Food Industry Partners: $24,000 in Year 1, growing to $48,000 in Year 5.
- Individual Donors: $10,000 in Year 1, growing to $26,000 in Year 5.
- Pay (a full year, per person, including payroll taxes and workers' compensation): executive Director $52,000; program Director $46,000; instructor $40,000; job Coach (part-time) $24,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: participant Stipends $24,000; food Safety Certification Fees $6,000; ingredients and Supplies $10,000; commercial Kitchen Rental $12,000; employer Outreach $4,000; administration and Insurance $9,000. These grow between 4% and 5% a year.
- Equipment: $16,000 at the start, then $2,500 to $3,500 a year.
- Startup costs: $25,000, paid once from $84,000 in startup money.
- Participants served: about 40 in Year 1, growing to about 120 in Year 5. Sites: 1 in Year 1, growing to 2 by Year 5. Cohorts run twelve weeks, with two cohorts in Year 1.
- About 4% of each year's income is still owed to us at year end.
- Tax: none, as a nonprofit.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and real budget.

Startup Costs