ROOM AT THE TABLE - Intersight - University at Buffalo

County, one of the requirements should examine whether or not the new
business has a social entrepreneurial prong in the context of the food system.
Currently, there is no incentive program geared towards entrepreneurs
within the food system. In devising incentives for local emerging and/or
current entrepreneurs, the County should work with the ECIDA to devise a
marketing plan that will attract this unique set of stakeholders. The County
and IDA should work on this effort immediately, with the intent of offering
an array of incentives within one year. As a corollary effect, the County and
ECIDA should witness an increase in the number of applications for grants
from agricultural businesses, due to these new incentives.
10. Target Industry Clusters (Medium Priority)
Currently, there is no plan or strategy to capitalize on target industry
clusters, or geographic concentrations of interconnected companies and
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months, with a plan to promote and bring together various producers within
the next one to two years. Within two years, a campaign to promote these
clusters should be fully implemented.
Erie County must identify local strengths in the food industry and
make them stronger. For example, currently, the dairy industry has a high
economic multiplier, which could become a food industry cluster. As a strong
product, dairy production may be paired with nearby cheese processing as
a commercial complement. Effective branding follows, with the possibility
of creating a regional brand for all cheese creation, as opposed to limiting to
county­only branding.
Upon recognizing which food industry clusters would work best,
the County could take advantage of the new resource by instituting training
courses. This could take the form of vocational training in the industry
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