Maine Center for Entrepreneurs

06/17/2026

Calling all Maine food producers, buyers, retailers, distributors, chefs, foodservice professionals, investors, and industry partners... Registration is officially OPEN for the 2026 Maine Food Producers Showcase & Golden Fork Awards!

Join us Thursday, October 8 at Holiday Inn By the Bay in Portland for one of Maine’s premier food, beverage, and seafood industry events.

This year’s Showcase will bring together 50+ Maine producers and food industry leaders for an afternoon of connection and celebration.

Come for the high-impact workshops on retail and foodservice trends. Stay for the Golden Fork Awards, exhibitor showcase, Maine-made product tastings, and industry reception.

Whether you’re looking to discover new products, build relationships, or celebrate the people shaping Maine’s food economy, this is the room to be in!

Register today: LINK IN BIO!

06/16/2026

A little behind-the-scenes moment from yesterday’s photo shoot with and photographer Zack Bowen at Naomi got to see how the sausage - er, popcorn - is made, and we love getting a peek at the creative work that helps Maine food brands tell their story.

Always fun to see our Food Accelerator community out in the world, building brands one delicious detail at a time🍿

06/15/2026

Naomi spent a perfectly Maine summer day at Resurgam Music & Arts Festival produced by soaking up sunshine, live music, and, of course, running into MCE Food Accelerator friends all over the place.

So fun to see and out vending, sharing what they do best, and adding even more flavor to an already beautiful Portland weekend.

We love this community, and we love that you can’t go far in Maine without bumping into a partner serving up something special 🙌

06/08/2026

One of the things that makes Maine’s food ecosystem special is how often successful founders turn around and help the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Last week, Josh Scherz, co-founder and manager at joined GMRI’s Blue Economy Summer Series to share insights on building a seafood brand, growing Maine-made products in competitive markets, and creating more value for Maine’s seafood industry.

Thank you for a great program and thank you for being such an integral part of the growing food producers community 🙌

05/22/2026

Food Accelerator client spotted in the wild!

Yesterday, MCE’s Janine Bisaillon-Cary stopped by the Costco Roadshow in Scarborough this week to support Co. CEO Lewis Goldstein alongside MCE Mentor Brian Guthrie as they connected with shoppers and shared their Maine-made products.

These roadshows are a huge opportunity for emerging food brands, offering real-time customer feedback, retail exposure, and nonstop sampling action. It’s exciting to see Maine companies continuing to grow their reach and build momentum in major retail spaces like 🙌

If you’re headed to Costco Scarborough this week, stop by and support them through 5/24! 🛒

05/20/2026

What a day👏

The 2026 Maine Entrepreneurs Summit brought together founders, funders, mentors, partners, and innovators from across the state for an afternoon full of celebrating Maine entrepreneurship.

From packed workshops and meaningful networking conversations to the energy of the Top Gun Statewide Pitch-Off, this event was a reminder of just how strong and supportive Maine’s startup ecosystem truly is.

A huge thank you to our speakers, sponsors, volunteers, and every attendee who helped make this year’s Summit such a success. And of course, congratulations to all of the incredible entrepreneurs who took the stage and shared their vision for Maine’s future!

05/19/2026

05/19/2026

We love seeing our entrepreneur community building businesses around real-life experiences and unmet needs!

Congrats to MenoPantry founders Kate Howe and Caitlin Hosmer, MS, RDN, LD on this feature in the Portland Press Herald highlighting their mission to support women navigating perimenopause and menopause through nutrition-based products.

MenoPantry is part of the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs Cultivator program, and it’s been exciting to watch their growth as they bring innovation, transparency, and purpose to an often-overlooked space in wellness.

Read the article here 👇

The founders of MenoPantry hope their smoothie mix will help them break into an $18 billion menopause marketplace.

05/14/2026

Our Food Accelerator team is thrilled to welcome Shovel and Spoon to MarketShare, MCE’s program supporting Maine food and beverage brands as they grow and scale, funded by 🥙

Shovel and Spoon was founded by Tomer Kilchevsky and Courtney Perry, and started as a small farm-to-table catering venture on their organic farm in Limington and has grown into a fresh, refrigerated food brand bringing Middle Eastern flavors and Maine ingredients together in a really beautiful way.

And trust us when we say their hummus deserves the hype!

Smooth, creamy, made in small batches with clean ingredients and no preservatives, this is the kind of product you try once and immediately start telling people about with its “accidentally finish the container in one sitting” quality.

From hummus and tahini to labneh and pita, everything they make is rooted in quality ingredients, and real flavor without shortcuts.

We’re especially excited to support their continued retail growth and help expand the reach of their products across Maine and beyond.

Welcome to MarketShare, Shovel and Spoon. We’re glad you’re here! 💛