Empower Project Aims to Encourage Black-Owned CPG Businesses
The Empower Project was created by a consortium of nine firms with the intention of amplifying the voices of Black-owned businesses. Too often, in both the world at large and within the consumer-packaged goods (CPG) space, Black voices are underrepresented, leading to greater inequality and a further widening of the wealth gap. The goal of The Empower Project is to begin eradicating those disparities.
The firms making up The Empower Project are all recognized leaders in their respective fields, which include branding, marketing, communications, food manufacturing, e-commerce, financial strategy, startup investing, financial strategy, data analysis and legal issues. Together, they will be investing nearly $700,000 in services to a Black-owned CPG business to help it achieve rapid growth and the opportunity to succeed in a highly competitive marketplace. Applications are being accepted now at caempowerproject.org.
“Our goal is to capitalize on the strengths of our strategic partners and to jointly invest in a brand that we believe has the highest probability of success and can make the biggest positive impact on Black lives,” said Steve Gaither, Chief Marketing Officer at C.A. Fortune, who first conceived the idea for the project, alongside William Madden from Whole Brain Consulting, and brought the other partners together.
Eligible businesses must be Black-owned or founded with current annual revenue between $150,000 and $10 million. Additionally, the business must also be able to dedicate time and energy to manage this project and have the ability to cover the hard costs of external expenses for items including packaging, printing, and distribution.
“The consumer-packaged goods industry is a difficult space for any new company to break into,” said Kyle Gardner, Chief Executive Officer and co-Founder, Dobson Avenue Capital Partners. “My core business is focused on supporting underrepresented entrepreneurs and I am eager to not only provide funding to this business, but also to share my business acumen with them to help take them to the next level. I am so grateful to be a part of this project with all of these other powerhouse partners.”
Eligible businesses are invited to apply between now and January 15, 2021. Prior to that deadline, there will be a kickoff event to allow applicants to meet the agencies and individuals who will be working in concert to help the chosen concept reach its fullest potential. The Empower Informational 101 Event will take place on December 15, 2020 at 11 a.m. CST via Hopin.
After careful consideration of all applicants, five finalists will be chosen and invited to attend a virtual pitch slam on February 16, where they will be able to pitch their business venture to the sponsors. The winner will be announced on February 26, 2021.
C.A. Fortune, the private-held, full service-consumer brands agency, is the title sponsor of The Empower Project. They offer their clients a comprehensive solution including sales management, an outsourced sales accelerator, marketing and branding, insights, retail activation, digital and e-comm services, and are eager to host all partners in this initiative.
The nine firms partnering with The Empower Project are:
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Jasper Hill Launches Two New Cheeses: Whitney and Sherry Gray, Modified Atmosphere Packaging for Exact Weight Cuts
Jasper Hill Farm announces the addition of Whitney and Sherry Gray, the seventeenth and eighteenth cheeses, respectively, in its cellar portfolio.
Whitney is a mountain-style cheese made from Jasper’s own grass-fed cows and washed with wine from the fermentation tanks of La Garagista, a terroir-driven natural winery in Vermont. Whitney pairs well with natural white wines, fresh IPA, toasted nuts and dried fruit, and leftovers from the cheeseboard are a fine accompaniment to grilled vegetables and meats.
Sherry Gray is a double-cream, ash-ripened medallion made with Jasper’s own milk and additional cream from Monument Farms in the Champlain Valley. It has a delicate, velvety rind that gives way to a gently-oozing creamline and a center the texture of dense cheesecake. Buttery, milky notes dominate, with a lingering, subtly nutty warmth on the finish.
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“Our exact wait program is a win-win for time-pressed retailers who may not have the staff to portion and hand-wrap our cheeses in-store during Covid, as well as consumers who want the convenience of stocking up,” said Jasper Hill Farm Director of Marketing Zoe Brickley. “I’m proud that we’re one of the first artisan cheesemakers in the U.S. to employ these modified atmosphere pouches — which are commonly used in Europe for Comté and Gruyère — as a solution to a need in the marketplace.”
Olive Oil Producers Employ Blockchain to Verify Authenticity
IBM and olive oil producers Conde de Benalua, a cooperative in Spain made up of more than 2,000 farmers, and Rolar de Cuyo, an olive oil supplier in Argentina, today announced they are using IBM Food Trust on IBM Cloud to trace the lifecycle of their product and provide traceability, authenticity and quality for consumers. They join CHO, a Tunisia-based producer that makes Terra Delyssa brand olive oil, and I Potti de Fratini, a family-run oil mill in Italy, which joined IBM Food Trust earlier in 2020.
Using blockchain technology, these companies from around the world are promoting greater consumer trust in their olive oil and working to create a more efficient and transparent supply chain.
Consumers’ demand for transparency and general distrust have been driven by recent reports of olive oil counterfeits and adulteration. That trend is reflected in a broader context, according to a recent IBM Institute for Business Value study, which found that 73% of consumers will pay a premium for full transparency into the products they buy.
“Our mission is to provide customers quality olive oil so they can enjoy a genuine and healthy product. Rolar de Cuyo’s objective in using blockchain technology is to ensure olive oil packers worldwide trust us and choose us. IBM blockchain technology provides the transparency we need to trace the origin of our products, complying with all quality processes to reach consumers’ tables,” said Guillermo José Albornoz, Rolar de Cuyo Director.
IBM Food Trust uses IBM Blockchain technology and IBM Cloud to close the information gap for customers. By scanning a QR code on each bottle of olive oil, consumers can trace its production from the groves where the olives were grown, to the mills where they were processed into oil, to the stores where it is sold. They can see images of where the olives were picked and pressed and get to know the farmers and workers behind the scenes and even review what criteria was met for the oil in each bottle. For example, the tracing will show whether the olives were processed to the standards required to be labeled extra virgin olive oil.
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The growing demand in early January helped CHO anticipate a spike in sales due to its new consumer traceability app. Supply chains had ample products on store shelves throughout the pandemic, during which time demand rose 30% due to an increase in consumers cooking at home.
CHO is now working on creating a separate enterprise application for distributors and retailers. This app will provide access to in-depth information about each processing and control stage that a certain lot has passed through, including whether it was first cold-pressed, extra virgin or organic, with analysis from CHO’s International Olive Council-accredited laboratory and third-party auditors.
“Our continuing work with olive oil producers demonstrates the growing momentum around Food Trust and our commitment to strengthening the chain that connects food from farm to table around the world,” said Raj Rao, General Manager, IBM Blockchain Platforms. “There’s a growing desire among consumers to know where their food comes from and an increased business motivation to optimize processes with better supply insights. We’re able to work with olive oil producers and distributors provide a single source of secured and transparent information through IBM Blockchain technology.”
