Collaboration Drives Innovation with Midwest Dairy and The Hatchery Chicago®

The Hatchery Chicago^® and Midwest Dairy Partner to Support Local Food and Beverage Entrepreneurs

CHICAGO, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hatchery Chicago^®, a leading non-profit incubator dedicated to fostering successful food and beverage businesses on the West Side of Chicago, announces its collaboration with farmer-focused leaders, Midwest Dairy, for an opportunity aimed at emerging brands. The Private Kitchen Pitch Contest Presented by Midwest Dairy offers participants access to state-of-the-art, commercial kitchen space and comprehensive support services to fuel business growth. Two finalists will be awarded up to one year of private kitchen space at The Hatchery, enabling them to scale their businesses like never before.

In the previous year, five companies showcased their innovative ideas before a panel of judges, and Nikkita Randle's Twisted Eggroll emerged as the winner, securing six months of rent-free private commercial kitchen space. Reflecting on the experience, Randle stated, "Midwest Dairy has been an absolute blessing for [us]. Having our rent eliminated for 6 months kept our business in a healthier financial state. We were able to send out more samples to potential stores with the funds we saved. Midwest Dairy has connected us to a different platform that will allow Twisted Eggroll to thrive moving forward."

"We take immense pride in partnering with Midwest Dairy for another exciting pitch contest to support the startup community," emphasizes Natalie Shmulik, Chief Strategy & Incubation Officer of The Hatchery. "Midwest Dairy's commitment to advancing innovation, as well as creating more diverse and inclusive opportunities for startups, greatly aligns with our mission. These sponsored kitchens give entrepreneurs the opportunity to push past barriers, launch unique concepts to market, and drive innovation in dairy and the industry as a whole."

To be eligible for the Private Kitchen Pitch Contest Presented by Midwest Dairy, all applicant businesses must utilize 30% or more of cow's dairy milk in their ingredient base. Current private kitchen tenants of The Hatchery Chicago® are not eligible to participate. Prospective businesses and entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply at bit.ly/midwestdairyhatchery2023.

ABOUT THE HATCHERY CHICAGO^®

The Hatchery Chicago^® was developed as a joint venture of two Chicago nonprofits, Allies for Community Business and Industrial Council of Nearwest Chicago (ICNC) to economically develop the west side of Chicago. All funds support The Hatchery's mission of helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses and enhance economic development and job creation on Chicago's West Side.

ABOUT MIDWEST DAIRY^®

Midwest Dairy® represents 4,600 dairy farm families to 39 million consumers working on their member's behalf to build dairy demand by inspiring consumer confidence in our products and production practices. Midwest Dairy focuses its efforts on sharing insights and developing programs and resources for retail, health and wellness, school food service, and industry partners. Its goal is to maximize the impact by working with and through partners to share information and real-time experiences that showcase how dairy products resonate with today's consumer: responsibly produced, nutrient-rich, locally driven and offers real enjoyment. Midwest Dairy is funded by farmers across a 10-state region, including Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, and eastern Oklahoma.

For more information about The Hatchery Chicago® and the Private Kitchen Pitch Contest Presented by Midwest Dairy, please visit www.thehatcherychicago.com

SOURCE The Hatchery Chicago