FocusMaine wins $6.9 million Alfond grant to expand food economy jobs

The statewide workforce development group FocusMaine has received a nearly $7 million challenge grant from the Harold Alfond Foundation to continue its work in growing Maine’s food economy.

The grant, spread out over three years, will allow the organization to update its strategic plan to deliver programs that support businesses in agriculture, aquaculture and biopharmaceuticals.

FocusMaine, based in Augusta, was founded in 2016 with the goal of supporting growth industries by attracting businesses to the state, helping them with market and workforce development. From 2017 through 2022, 5,000 jobs were created in Maine’s food and bioscience sectors, and 500 of them were in companies specifically served by FocusMaine.

“With our valued partner organizations, we are catalyzing jobs for tomorrow to replace the jobs of yesterday and developing the workforce for those jobs, helping to shape Maine’s economy for future resilience and growth,” said Andrea Cianchette Maker, president of FocusMaine.

Already, FocusMaine has created programs to support emerging businesses, including “Tastemakers,” at Coastal Enterprises Inc. of Brunswick, which offers grants to established food and beverage companies to expand and improve production capacity and create jobs.

The Maine Center for Entrepreneurs has partnered to oversee three different accelerator programs and the Maine Aquaculture Association has collaborated on business coaching and communications for members of that industry.

“FocusMaine has been critical to our organization’s ability to support the continued development of a sustainable Maine aquaculture sector,” said Sebastian Belle, the association’s executive director. “With FocusMaine collaboration and support, MAA has designed and produced nationally recognized tools, benchmarking data, business coaching and workforce training that have strengthened Maine’s aquaculture industry and helped make Maine’s working waterfronts more resilient in the face of rapid social and ecological change.”

Educate Maine also has partnered on both an internship enhancement program and a pre-apprenticeship program called Aquaculture Pioneers that’s the first of its kind in Maine.

“Maine’s ability to attract and retain young people – and ensure a vibrant economy – is lifted by the leadership of partners like FocusMaine,” said Jason Judd, executive director of Educate Maine. “The lessons learned in these programs have an impact in other sectors and businesses, leveraging the power of the Harold Alfond Foundation donations across Maine.”

To date, FocusMaine has assisted more than 180 Maine-based companies – Bixby Chocolates, Vena’s Fizz Bar, Maine Grains and Atlantic Sea Farms, to name a few.

Zoe Croft, director of sales for Biddeford-based Atlantic Sea Farms, which produces seaweed programs, said support from FocusMaine has given the company “access to invaluable market data, industry trends, and analysis of our sales performance.”

The Alfond Foundation grant will allow those programs, and others, to continue. It also will allow FocusMaine to add new programs in the biosciences, in partnership with the University of Maine and the Roux Institute, among others.

Greg Powell, chairman of the foundation, praised the organization for its leadership and strong partner network.

“As it rolls out this next stage in its long-term strategy, we are confident that FocusMaine will drive the growth of even more quality jobs in Maine’s most globally competitive sectors,” he said.