Franklin County CDC

08/28/2026

Kate and Hannah had a fun morning gleaning apples at Quonquont Farm in Whately with Rachel's Table and other local food system organizations. A fun way of putting community, local farms, and food access into action!

08/26/2026

Check out this upcoming E-Contractor Academy: Municipal & Agency Procurement Pathways.
A FREE 5-week training program for contractors looking to work with public agencies and municipalities in MA. Through a mix of virtual and Boston based in-person sessions, participants will learn how to navigate public procurement processes, understand public contracts and compliance, and strengthen their business capacity and financial readiness.

Applications Open! This cohort will run from October 7 through November 4, 2026 Format: Hybrid; 4 Virtual, 1 In-Person Occurrence: Every Wednesday Time: 4:30 to 7:00 PM Priority Application Deadline: August 31, 2026 Regular Application Deadline: September 14, 2026 LIMITED AVAILABILITY! Early applica...

08/24/2026

📣 ¡Mañana! Free Marketing Workshop in Spanish / Taller de Marketing GRATIS en Español

Are you a Spanish-speaking small business owner—or do you know someone who is? Please join us or help us spread the word!

¡Dueños de pequeños negocios, esta oportunidad es para ustedes!

📅 Tuesday, August 25 - Martes, 25 de agosto
⏰ 6:00 – 7:00 PM
📍 Common Capital – 270 Bridge St., Springfield

✅ El taller es GRATIS y todavía estás a tiempo para registrarte.

👉 Regístrate aquí: https://www.cognitoforms.com/WayFinders6/SpanishMarketingWorkshopsAugust2026

Please share with Spanish-speaking business owners and entrepreneurs in your network. ¡Ayúdanos a correr la voz!

08/06/2026

Local food systems matter — now more than ever.

Farmers markets are more than a place to buy fresh food — they connect farmers, food entrepreneurs, and neighbors while strengthening our regional economy.

The FCCDC is proud to support the growers and food businesses building a more resilient local food system through programs like the Western Massachusetts Food Processing Center and the Massachusetts Agricultural Innovation Center.

This Farmers Market Week, we encourage everyone to visit a local market, meet the producers behind your food, and support the small businesses that help our communities thrive.

Massachusetts celebrates Farmers Market Week, Aug 2-8, amid rising consumer interest in local produce following a cyclospora outbreak.

07/10/2026

Today we were honored to welcome Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources leadership, and partners from across the Commonwealth for a tour of the Franklin County CDC's Western Massachusetts Food Processing Center.

The visit highlighted how collaboration and strategic investment are shaping the future of food in Massachusetts—from supporting innovative entrepreneurs like Pearle Caviar, to helping local farms create value-added products through our Preserve the Valley program, to partnering with organizations like Just Roots, CISA and UMass to strengthen a resilient, regional food economy.

We're grateful for MDAR's continued support through programs like the Food Ventures Program and the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Grant Program, which have helped us expand our capacity to serve entrepreneurs and local farms. These investments are creating jobs, reducing food waste, supporting local agriculture, and helping bring new food products to market.

Thank you to everyone who joined us today—and to our incredible FCCDC team for showcasing the impact of this work every day. Together, we're investing in the future of food, right here in Franklin County.

07/10/2026

“I founded They Keep Bees to strengthen the future of beekeeping through better genetics, better education and broader access, and I’m doing that,” Roell said. “This $10K could help me get even further along to my goal of strengthening the local food system and pollinator health.” Congratulations again They Keep Bees!

Ang Roell of They Keep Bees wins $10,000 investment at Franklin County CDC's 'Take the Floor' pitch contest, boosting local food system and bee health.

06/29/2026

Thank you to everyone who attended, volunteered, sponsored, performed, and helped make the 5th Annual Juneteenth Celebration such a meaningful day of community, reflection, music, food, and joy. This celebration is only possible because so many people come together to make it happen. We can't wait to celebrate with you again next year!

Interested in helping shape next year's event? Join Mpress in forming the Juneteenth Planning Committee! We'd love to have more community members involved.

A special thank you to our sponsors:
• Moving Mountains
• Greenfield Savings Bank
• Franklin First a Division of Greylock Federal Credit Union
• African American Female Professor Award Association

06/29/2026

We had a full house on June 25th at Hawks and Reed for the final Take the Floor Business Pitch Contest. Congratulations to They Keep Bees for taking home the $10,000 grand prize!

All 5 pitchers did an amazing job of generating excitement about their businesses:
Perspective Learning Inc.- https://perspectivelearningma.com/
Outer Limits Cycle & Ski- https://www.outerlimitscycle.ski/
They Keep Bees- https://www.theykeepbees.com/
Tristan Evans Construction Inc.- https://tristanevansconstruction.com/
Giovanni's Red Rose Motel- https://booking.redrosemotel.com/

Thank you to Franklin First Federal Credit Union for donating prize money, thank you to our judges, and community for supporting entrepreneurship!

06/24/2026

💥Are you ready for the Take the Floor FINAL? 💥

Join us this Thursday, June 25, at Hawks and Reed Performing Arts Center , 5 to 7 p.m., to hear 5 great pitches from 5 amazing entrepreneurs! One will walk away with a $10,000 investment in their business, donated by Franklin First Federal Credit Union

All are welcome. Refreshments will be served. Walk on in, or RSVP here: https://app.etapestry.com/onlineforms/FranklinCountyCommunityDevelo/2026-TTF-Final.html

📸: Chrystal Santos of Perspective Learning, 2026 Take the Floor finalist