SURVIVING THE {FOOD} DESERT
Bridging food & health education with access to sustainable resources to aid Food disparaged communities in the fight for Food Equity.
Project Description
SURVIVING THE FOOD DESERT is an immersive Food equity & empowerment plan built to bridge food & health education with tangible, readily accessible resources and programs to improve and elevate the quality of life for citizens living in food disparaged communities in order to further close the food & health disparity gap.
"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime!"
- Lao Tzu
THE PROBLEM
In today's society, there are many organizations who exists solely to provide basic resources and access to sustainable and/or healthy food to aid food deserts in America; however, throughout my 9 years of being a chef and food desert advocate, working alongside some of these organizations to show community members how to utilize these resources through cooking classes, demos and instructional courses, I've learned that we have done the work to provide communities with WHAT they need to live a better, healthier life, but they still don't know HOW to fully utilize what they have in a way in which these resources can benefit it's intended audience to its fullest potential. Therein lies the problem - the MISSING INGREDIENT! While communities now have access to more healthy food options and resources (food pantries, food drives, community gardens, etc.) citizens often lack the education and skills to incorporate these foods, at times new and very unfamiliar, into their every day lives, resulting in returning to old, unhealthy habits...or simply sticking to a small arsenal of familiar cooking and food preparation methods. This reality further leads to frustration and discouragement in the fight for a better, healthier life.
THE PLAN
SURVIVING THE FOOD DESERT is comprised of 4 interactive phases intentionally designed to provide a tangible educational component with a dual direct & indirect impact focus:
PHASE 1 - "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook + Resource Guide - a compilation of recipes inspired by ingredients typically found in food drive boxes. This inspirational literary work also includes a local & national food desert statistics and a list of Food equity champions around the nation doing the work to heal our food disparity crisis (GOAL LAUNCH: Pre-Sales: Mid August 2023; Sales Begin: September 2023)
PHASE 2 - The COMMen Place - a tech-driven, service based multi-use Production Kitchen hub where we put COMMUNITY needs all in ONE place - Commercial Real Estate facility housing Community Kitchen classrooms, Consultation rooms/Boardrooms, Commissary kitchens, Digital Culinary content studio and a dine-in Tech lounge (GOAL LAUNCH: Q2 2024 - OPENING IN FALL 2024*)
PHASE 3 - "Seaux Tasty Spice Blends" - These LOW-NO Sodium all-purpose spice blends are the kick to give your life the spice that it needs. The first food product line with community impact in mind - a percentage of every unit sold will go back to providing aid in food insecure areas. (GOAL LAUNCH: Summer 2024)
- PHASE 4 - (C2C) Corporate2Community Cooking Class Series - 6-12 month series of corporate sponsored cooking classes series that allows Corporate partners to cook alongside a Community organization they support in order to promote inclusion and interaction from different walks of life through learning & dining in delicious harmony (GOAL LAUNCH: FALL 2024-FALL 2025)
"Access + Resources - Education = WASTED POTENTIAL"
- Chef Amber Williams
MARKET OPPORTUNITY
This project is built to have local and national impact:
PHASE 1 - Cookbook + Resource Guide
- Local & National Impact
- Goal: 10,000 copies sold & distributed
- 3-4 jobs created and maintained
PHASE 2 - The COMMen Place
- Local Impact with options to expand
- Create 5+ Opportunity zones to benefit from
- 40+ jobs created and maintained
PHASE 3 - Seaux Tasty Spice Blends
- Local & National Impact, including Online & In-store shelf placement
- 10+ jobs created and maintained
PHASE 4 - C2C Cooking Series
- Local Impact with potential for Virtual offerings to gain National impact
- 5+ jobs created and maintained
FUNDING
We are seeking $500,000 in start up capital & support as a seed for the execution of the developmental stages of each Phase of this project:
- PHASE 1: Cookbook & Resource Guide - $120,000 - To support bulk distribution to community partners, book publication & distribution; Marketing & PR services; Live demos & Launch event
- PHASE 2: The COMMen Place - $300,000 - To support building acquisition costs; initial permits; architect & GC costs, earnest funds, etc.
- PHASE 3: Seaux Tasty Spice Blends - $50,000 - To support sample development; product labeling design; production labor jobs; marketing & digital/shelf placement
- PHASE 4: C2C Cooking Series - $30,000 - Cooking station equipment, utensils, aprons, and supplies; marketing; administrative duties; printed materials, etc.
OUR TEAM
- Developer/Concept Creator - Chef Amber Williams, Owner/Executive Chef of Le Rouge Cuisine & CEO of C.R.E.O. Concepts & Consulting, LLC
ADVISORY BOARD
- Donna Henry, MSPL - Senior Director of Programs, Impact Ventures
- Michael Bowen - President/CEO, Revitalization Strategies
- Denita Lacking-Quinn - MWBE Diversity Manager, Balfour Beatty
- Jonathan Jeans - VP of Operations, B.HOM Student Living
- Trae'vorris Canady - Managing Director, Canady Investments & Acquisitions
- Dr. Latame Phillips - CEO, Hunger Busters
BOOKKEEPER/TAX PREPARER - LifeTax Financial (Alfred Record, Owner)
ADMIN ASSISTANT - Business with Princess (Princess Veasley, Owner)
PR AGENCY - The Jeniro Agency
WHY SHOULD YOU SUPPORT THIS CAMPAIGN?
- ALIGNMENT - See your personal or company-wide values, mission and goals materialize within ONE project.
- IMPACT - Give a seed towards a vision that will then help grow an entire ecosystem
- EXCLUSIVITY - Be on the cutting edge of history to embark upon something that has never been seen or done before!
Thank you for your time and consideration. We hope this vision clearly paints a picture we can all see ourselves in, as well as see ourselves lending a hand to help make a reality.
Updates
The Campaign FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is "Surviving the Food Desert" Project?
Surviving the Food Desert project is and inclusive 4-phased Food equity impact plan utilizing tangible resources and programs to increase access & education of sustainable, healthy lifestyle and eating practices in food disparaged communities where basic resources are in lack. The 4 phases are: 1) "Surviving the Food Desert: Cookbook & Resource guide; 2) The COMMen Place Multi-use production Kitchen hub; 3) All-Purpose Spice Blend line; 4) Corporate 2 Community Cooking Series
Why was this project created?
The project was created to fill a huge deficit in resources in the plight to heal food deserts. From the creator's, Chef Amber, nearly decade experience as a chef working alongside nonprofits who serve this community, she saw that although readily accessible food was being given to the community, there was no educational tools and programs present to teach citizens how to incorporate these new foods and resources into their daily lives in a way that would foster huge impact.
What is the end goal of this project?
The end goal for the project is to create sustainable resources that can be utilized nationwide: 1) For the cookbook, a final goal would be to publish several volumes of the book to keep building the communities arsenal to create unique and fun recipe out of staple pantry items found in food desert areas; 2) For the Kitchen production hub, I'd like to see several locations emerge in major cities where resources are lacking for food entrepreneurs and the communities they serve; 3) For the spice line, the goal is to create a brand that brings spice to your life but with a purpose; building a product that not only becomes a household brand but a wholesale entity that large entities and families can utilize to cut cost and time while bringing flavor to their food; 4) And for the Corporate-to-Community classes, the end goal is for people from different walks of life to connect over doing life together and cooking together in order to foster understanding, love and acceptance while corporations get to interact with the very citizens their companies have vowed to serve through their social impact pledges.
Just Because I Care
With your $5,000 seed, you will receive:
- a BRONZE supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (10) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide
With your $10,000 seed, you will receive:
- a SILVER supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (25) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide to distribute or donate to your organization or persons of choice
With your $25,000 seed, you will receive:
- a GOLD supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (50) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide to distribute or donate to your organization of choice
- (1) Corporate-to-Community (C2C) Cooking Class
With your $50,000 seed, you will receive:
- an ELITE supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (50) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide to distribute or donate to your organization of choice
- (1) Corporate-to-Community (C2C) Cooking Class
- (1) Exclusive Farm-to-Table Sponsor Dinner for (20) guests curated by Chef Amber using ingredients sourced from local farms and agriculture partners that fuel our fight for food equity.
Rewards
Just Because I Care
With your $5,000 seed, you will receive:
- a BRONZE supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (10) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide
With your $10,000 seed, you will receive:
- a SILVER supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (25) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide to distribute or donate to your organization or persons of choice
With your $25,000 seed, you will receive:
- a GOLD supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (50) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide to distribute or donate to your organization of choice
- (1) Corporate-to-Community (C2C) Cooking Class
With your $50,000 seed, you will receive:
- an ELITE supporter badge on all digital and printed materials
- (50) Signed copies of "Surviving the Food Desert" Cookbook & Resource Guide to distribute or donate to your organization of choice
- (1) Corporate-to-Community (C2C) Cooking Class
- (1) Exclusive Farm-to-Table Sponsor Dinner for (20) guests curated by Chef Amber using ingredients sourced from local farms and agriculture partners that fuel our fight for food equity.