This award provides funding to support the expansion of manufacturing at Blue Ridge Food Ventures (BRFV), a shared-use facility located at the Enka Campus of Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College. Additional equipment will enable users of the facility to increase manufacturing capacity, operate more efficiently, and complete additional tasks resulting in new products and offerings. The Center for Agricultural and Food Entrepreneurship, which owns BRFV, has worked closely with 10 of its current tenants and utilized data from potential tenants in the development of its expansion plan. It is expected that 25 new full-time jobs will be created and seven new businesses will be started as a result of these increases in manufacturing capacity and efficiency. Golden LEAF funds would be used for the additional equipment needed for the expansion.
