Innovation

Philly Foodworks, located in West Philadelphia, strives to provide the Philadelphia and South Jersey communities with freshly grown foods. Philly Foodworks operates out of a warehouse that is shared with other food companies. Their warehouse serves as the place for Philly Foodworks to receive, package, and send out the fresh, healthy and locally sourced foods. Philly Foodworks also carries a variety of non-perishable products, such as shampoos and deodorants.

Philly Foodworks fulfills the Sustainable Development Goal of Good Health and Well-Being by providing fresh and locally sourced food to nearby communities. All foods that Philly Foodworks sells gets assessed for their quality. Their foods are also all free of GMOs, hormones, and antibiotics. Philly Foodworks has dedicated themselves to education by partnering up with local preschools to help teach children and their families about nutrition, as well as introduce them to the taste of fresh produce.

The goal of Sustainable Cities and Communities is being fulfilled as Philly Foodworks strives to build a healthier community through connecting people with local farms and foods. Specifically, this is fulfilled by educating individuals on the importance of fresh foods and networking between local farmers, while minimizing waste. Lastly, Philly Foodworks helps create Responsible Consumption and Production by educating consumers on the importance of nutrition. In addition, Philly Foodworks conducts business processes in responsible and sustainable manner which results in creating as little as 1% food waste in its operations. Philly Foodworks recognizes that the food industry has the potential to be wasteful, and thus they dedicate themselves to minimize their waste. This is done through their actions of composting rotten or poor quality food, donating overstocked food to local food cupboards, and encouraging consumers to return their ice coolers for reuse.

Inspiration

Dylan Baird started as a Sociology Major at Temple University, but quickly realized that he wanted to change his major to Business. He saw studying business as an opportunity to enter a career that would allow him to be in control and create measurable change. Dylan had a special interest in and was inspired to create change in the the Food Industry. In an interview with Dylan, he highlighted that “Food is the origin of all community, it brings people together, connects us to God. People love to eat, and people love to talk about what they are eating.” Dylan identified a weakness in the Food Industry and believed that the process of receiving food could be improved and decided to take action. He created Philly Foodworks and built a network of local farmers. Both Dylan and the network of farmers believed that farmers’ markets were not the most efficient or effective method of fresh food distribution. Oftentimes, farmers’ markets make it difficult for local farmers to pursue profitability. By networking with local farmers, Dylan was able to establish a business model focused on providing fresh, healthy and locally sourced food to families in the community. Meanwhile, farmers who are partnered with Dylan and Philly Foodworks are able to focus primarily on cultivating their crops. This allows farmers to focus specifically on what they do best. Ultimately, Dylan is able to utilize the business skills he attained at Temple University, while determining the most efficient and effective way to distribute product.

Overall impact

Philly Foodworks positively impacts consumers by providing them with healthy alternatives. This company makes the time between the food being picked by the farmer and placed on a person's table as short as possible. Philly Foodworks provides their customers with produce that is substantially more natural than grocery store produce which is doused in unnatural chemicals to ensure a longer shelf life. Philly Foodworks has the potential to help people who live in Food Deserts. However, Philly Foodworks is typically utilized by middle to upper class citizens and these are not the typical people in Food Desert areas.

In addition, Philly Foodworks is able to support their farming networks and vice versa. As a network, the two are able to focus on what they do best; producing and shipping food. Through communication between the two and analyzing the current orders that are coming in, the network is able to create less than 1% waste. The less waste there is, the lower the carbon footprint which contributes to a more sustainable environment. The production process and shipping process of Philly Foodworks products is done so in a manner which is both profitable to the farmer and the companies employees. Both groups of people are able to receive a standard living wage, more than they would be if they sold their products through the means of a farmers market.

Business benefit

Philly Foodworks action of partnering with local producers constructs economically and environmentally sustainable communities at the same time as providing high quality foods. This company encourages their members to prepay so that Philly Foodworks can invest in local producers. Ultimately, this creates an association between the farmers, Philly Foodworks and the consumer, since each part of this network is invested in each others success. The success of one branch ties to the success of another. In other words, it is the groundwork of community. Because this company created this process, a more efficient way of providing healthy foods has become available to individuals.

Philly Foodworks strongly believes that the consumption of healthy foods is essential to live a good life. This company took their passion and belief in healthy foods contributing towards and created a way to give more people a chance to have a good life. Since food is such an essential part of human life, this company has felt the need to support the farmers who were working to produce foods. Consumers who order their food from this company can ensure that their foods have been handled with care and mindfulness. Ultimately, because of this business, smaller urban farms can have an easier time of finding consumers and consumers can consume fresh foods.

Social and environmental benefit

Philly Foodworks realizes that food brings people together, often times when people travel abroad they talk about the food they ate, or when there is an occasion to celebrate food is always involved. Thus, this company chose to benefit society by bringing them closer to those who produce the food that brings them together. The food and farmers used by this company are selected off of standards that their consumers have created and valued. Not only are the consumers needs put at the forefront of this companies priority, but so is the quality of their produce, health and safety of their employees, and the environment.

The food sold is mainly grown within a 150-mile radius of Philadelphia. Unfortunately, the weather can interfere with their locally grown vision, and they sometimes have to turn to more distant sources, yet ensure their values of high quality fresh foods are still being met. All of the food is GMO free and some food is grown organically. The food sold is benefiting society by providing high quality foods sold at a fair cost. Currently, this cost is high for some people but the company is dedicated to find out how to make it more accessible. Further, the company ensures that there is little to no waste as possible and has connected with local food cupboards where they donate any leftovers. This company is also willing to work with people and organizations to help them gain access to healthy food through means of fundraising, pushing for food justice and utilizing cross-promotion to help local nonprofits raise funds for their missions.

http://www.fox29.com/288706001-video

Interview

Dylan Baird, CEO & Co-founder