Food, Ag, Ideas Week will return this fall, and organizers expect that it will draw more attention and more attendees in year two.
For two years, Minnesota's food and agriculture startups had their own track in Twin Cities Startup Week, a celebration of tech and innovation. But in 2018, the food and agriculture community, led by Grow North, decided to host a separate theme week occurring at the same time as TCSW.
In its first year, Food, Ag, Ideas Week drew more than 1,000 attendees, Grow North Director Lauren Pradhan told Minne Inno. The organization expects that number to grow significantly in 2019.
Food, Ag, Ideas Week has expanded its offerings to include resources like a fly-in program, investor summit and low-cost entrepreneurial education workshop. It also has booked speakers like General Mills CEO Jeff Harmening, Sioux Chef Founder and CEO Sean Sherman, Seed 2 Growth Ventures Managing Director Sanjeev Krishnan and many, many others.
Minne Inno spoke with Pradhan to learn more about what to expect in the second iteration of Food, Ag, Ideas week.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Minne Inno: What should people know about year two of Food, Ag, Ideas Week?
Lauren Pradhan: We have been very intentional about bringing different perspectives to the table. This year, we have more speakers coming from outside of Minnesota to join the conversation and creating really compelling sessions to hear their perspectives. We're also trying to highlight topics that we expect to become mainstream.
MI: What will be some of the big topics of conversation this year?
LP: This has been the year of plant protein, so we'll be addressing that. We'll also be discussing things like soil health and regenerative agriculture, as well as big data and its farm applications. All of those will be really big topics for the coming year.
MI: Tell me about Grow North's relationship with Twin Cities Startup Week. Why did you decide to host at the same time?
LP: We are collaborating with Startup Week – we'll be cross-promoting events and helping each other out in general. When we started, we wanted to make sure that food and ag innovation was included in the overall conversation about innovation and entrepreneurship in Minnesota. It was really important to us that we have Food, Ag, Ideas Week alongside Twin Cities Startup Week. By hosting together, we're creating an invitation for food and ag entrepreneurs to become part of the broader innovation ecosystem. Generally, the community that I speak with is new to the larger startup community. They're excited that this is all happening – we all want to see food at the table.
MI: How has the food and ag community responded to the concept of Food, Ag, Ideas Week?
LP: The ecosystem has risen to the occasion. It's a real example of "If you build it, they will come." We want to continue to make this event as accessible as possible, which is why we're offering childcare and nursing rooms. It's all about reducing barriers. Everyone is important in creating a thriving ecosystem.
MI: Why should the greater startup community care about or pay attention to Minnesota's food and ag scene?
LP: The Twin Cities is a community that supports problem solvers. One of the biggest problems out there is improving how people eat and how we can feed them better. Food touches everyone. And we have incredible innovators and experts that the ecosystem really should know more about.
