We’re thrilled to welcome 15 food businesses into the 2025 FFI Fellows Program as of July 2025!
This program provides free training and consulting to 45 food-focused entrepreneurs each year to help them succeed. Fellows get the expertise and support they need to grow and scale, with an investible business model and financing strategy unique to their business.
The third cohort of 2025 includes these 15 food and beverage businesses, 9 from Wisconsin and 6 from across the nation:
- Black Squirrel Bake Shop – Madison, WI. Creates vegan cakes, cookies, and more for vegans, the vegan-curious, and the vegan-phobic (if you don’t tell them, they’ll never know!).
- Bumpin Blends – Los Angeles, CA. Bumpin Blends provides pre-blended, nutrient-rich smoothie cubes designed for easy blending, supporting energy, digestion, mood, and more—crafted for busy lifestyles and optimal wellness.
- Delish Delivered – Mequon, WI. Prepared dinners, soups, and desserts delivered to homes.
- Founding Fathers Farm LLC – DBA Adam’s Heirlooms – Mishicot, WI. Grows diverse heirloom vegetables and produce historically inspired value-added foods like shrubs, jams, sauces, catsups, and pestos, plus eggs, pork & beef.
- Grazeland – Medford, WI. Produces grass-fed milk from their farms.
- Happy Joy Candy Co. – Milwaukee, WI. Offers cotton candy, beverage glitter bombs, homemade marshmallows, and packaged cotton candy with edible glitter.
- Mock and Co – Fitchburg, WI. Specializes in full-bodied, flavorful mocktails perfect for lakeside sipping, supper club dinners, tailgates, or to hand out at meat raffles..
- My Little Tea Kettle, DBA Teaspressa – Phoenix, AZ. Provides patented tea that brews like coffee/espresso and LUXE mixer cubes, drink mixers in a compact, shelf-stable cube that make flavorful drinks or cocktails.
- Peanut Butter & Jelly Deli – West Allis, WI. Offers the world’s largest selection of freshly ground nut butter and regionally made craft jams, jellies, and fruit butter spreads.
- Salt Blade – Seattle, MT. Sells a wide variety of flavors of artisanal salami made from animals raised on a small family farm.
- SBR Provisions LLC / Pastazerts – Rockaway Park, NY. Has created the world’s first chocolate ravioli dessert, featuring chocolate pasta dough filled with all-natural ingredients like Strawberry Cheesecake and Peanut Butter & Jelly.
- Sherman Park Grocery Store – Milwaukee, WI. In the heart of Milwaukee, addressing one of 13 food deserts, bringing fresh fruits and vegetables to a community.
- Silver Moon Springs LLC – Elton, WI. Offers smoked salmon, smoked trout, smoked trout and salmon spreads. Fresh trout, salmon, yellow perch, walleye, and bluegills.
- unClassic – San Francisco, CA. Produces Oyster Mushroom Wings, Oyster Mushroom Nuggets, King Trumpet Shreds, Specialty Mushroom Grounds, and Lions Mane Breast. All pre-cooked, ready to heat & frozen.
- Wolf and Fox Winery – NEW HOLSTEIN, WI. As a winery, they grow grapes and make wine, and are also an event venue open for public and private events.
The program kicks off this month with a food business finance course and culminates in six months with an investor pitch. Entrepreneurs participate in regular virtual meetings with their cohort and in 1-on-1 sessions with their FFI coach. Training and consulting cover all areas of food business, including marketing and branding, sales, operations, accounting, finance, and food safety. This program is FREE and open to any food-focused entrepreneur in the United States.
This national program serves food, beverage, technology, value-added agriculture, and processing businesses. There are three cohorts each year, starting in January, May, and September. The application is online here and takes about 30 minutes to complete. Applications are accepted year-round, with review periods in December, April, and August.
The FFI Fellows Program is funded by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) and supported by FFI industry experts including Eurofins (Food Safety), Ogden, Glazer, + Schaefer (Law), Catapult Commercialization Services, Summit Credit Union, Farm Credit, Tribe 9 Foods, Compeer Financial, Real Food Brands, and Quigistics.
The Fellows program has worked with over 197 companies since 2015. As of 2024, participating companies have attracted $6.8 million in grant funding, $16.5 million in debt funding and $17.2 million in equity funding. In addition, they have generated over $123 million in business/sales.
