Meet the Spokes
Partnering to support new and existing Food and agriculture businesses
MBFFA uses an innovative Hub and Spoke model to identify, plan and deliver services to identified clients. The power of this model is the collaborative approach with each organization building on its established strengths, resources, networks and regional reputations to achieve the intended results and goals.
MBFFA Spokes will:
- Engage in direct outreach, including 1:1 loan consulting and technical assistance
- Focus on exceeding goals for participation and reaching underserved communities
- Conduct grassroots outreach through phone calls, emails, texts, meetings, etc.
- Drive data collection in accordance with required metrics to drive technical assistance plans
In addition, the Spokes will be responsible for providing community leadership, executing "in-language" technical assistance, supporting overall mission, and contributing to strategic planning.
Agricultural Utilization Research Institute
AURI is a thriving, culture-centered, Minnesota based nonprofit dedicated to fostering long-term economic benefit through applied research on value-added agricultural products, focusing on coproducts, biobased products, renewable energy, and food. For over 30 years, AURI has helped agricultural producers bring their ideas to reality, delivering innovative products to market across the nation and generating $450 million in economic activity for Minnesota in the past 5 years.
GreenSeam
GreenSeam’s mission is to elevate our region as the world-class food and agribusiness epicenter. With a vision to shape the future of agriculture, businesses and communities in the region. GreenSeam does this through four areas of focus: Business Retention and Expansion, Business Attraction and Creation, Talent development and Regional Branding and Promotion. GreenSeam is a strong partner due to their direct connection to Greater Mankato Growth the local Chamber of commerce, visitors bureau and economic development organization. Together they leverage one another’s strength to share team members and have access to additional expertise. They surround themselves with business and community leadership, which are very active.
Learn about GreenSeam's Global Workforce Program
Mogwai Collaborative
Mogwai Collaborative aims to provide an innovative, thriving and collaborative office space environment to meet the needs of the modern entrepreneur in our region. Mogwai provides fully furnished private offices, a coworking space with state-of-the-art boardroom and meeting room facilities. It is located inside the award winning, sustainable, solar panel powered, Hubbard Building. Since its fruition, the focus of Mogwai Collaborative has always been supporting locally owned businesses.
Region 9 Development Commission
The mission of the RNDC is to promote the development of the region through intergovernmental cooperation, community and human development, long-range planning, and technical assistance. RNDC's staff includes several planning professionals with a combination of education and experience to continue the commission's 50-year legacy of partnering with counties, cities, townships, and higher education to progress community and economic development projects. RNDC has previously partnered with Minnesota State University, Mankato, and South Central College to create an agriculture resiliency plan as well as host informational sessions to support farmers in the region.
Southern Agriculture Center of Excellence (SACE) at South Central College
SACE is a Minnesota State Center of Excellence. South Central College serves as the lead institution for the Center. The Center serves to promote and establish agricultural education excellence in Minnesota across the industry. SACE works to establish partnerships with key businesses and organizations in the agriculture industry to meet workforce demands and training needs. The mission of SACE is to align students with the resources of academic institutions and industry to develop and sustain the workforce needs of agriculture in Southern Minnesota. SACE targets veterans as well as other students. While it’s often challenging for veterans to find their career path after service, agriculture offers a wide range of opportunities.
