AURI is proud of its work with many of Minnesota’s underserved/BIPOC communities. The organization’s efforts to support these communities has a significant social, economic and equity impact throughout the state of Minnesota. To learn more about AURI’s work, please read on to see overviews of select projects and clients who fall into this category.
Client: Gitigaanike the Red Lake Local Foods Initiative
Project Overview: AURI worked with this client to generate revenue to sustain Gitigaanike into the future, producing organically grown produce at affordable rates by utilizing the by-product of the Red Lake Nation Fishery to pursue a fish emulsion product & fish-meal product.
Utilization of the fish emulsion product as an organic based soil amendment decreases our impact on the environment in developing our agricultural fertilization practices. Development of a fish-meal product for animal consumption will allow Gitigaanike to generate enough revenue to further develop infrastructure and equipment needs in scaling-up.
Client: Minnesota Halal and Kosher Communities
The Halal + Kosher Meat Market Assessment Project Overview: Halal and kosher meat markets offer untapped opportunities for Minnesota farmers to diversify and expand their markets and for new and emerging farmers to become involved in food production. In order to do so, there is a need to describe the landscape of the halal and kosher markets. This report provides an overview, criteria, barriers and consumer concerns and preferences.
On the consumer side, Minnesota is home to thousands of people with an unmet preference for fresh, high quality and affordable meats processed using halal or kosher methods. On the producer side, many farmers and ranchers across the state are looking for new markets and have an interest in serving these consumers. Each stop along the supply chain requires understanding the requirements for halal and kosher production. No single barrier stands in the way of entering either of these markets; instead, a lack of information about requirements and a lack of relationships among farmers, brokers, processors and retailers have kept these markets fragmented.
Client: 3 Sisters Market
Project Overview: AURI assisted in determining shelf-life for hot pepper sauce to be sold in grocery stores and used in restaurants.
Client: Coco, Bee & Nut: Grain Free Granola
Project Overview: AURI worked with this female-owned business to test products for nutritional information and helped develop new nutritional product labels for its five flavors of granola.
Client: Harmony Cricket Farm/Protein Bar
Project Overview: AURI supported this female-owned food brand with product development and improvement for its gluten free, nut free foods fueled by crickets. AURI also assisted with process development for eventual commercialization.
Client: Pleasant Grove Pizza Farm
Project Overview: Provided client with information, resources and best practices for shelf stability, nutritional labels and commercialization services for a new, hand crafted pizza sauce.
Client: Mama Doha
Project Overview: AURI helped the client by providing, among other things, pH testing for a new Egyptian jam product in order to ensure product safety and shelf stability.
