Food Business Center Awardees Share Insights, Challenges at Peer Focus Group
RENO, NV, April 2, 2026 – On March 25, four awardees of the Southwest Regional Food Business Center’s Business Builder grants gathered for a peer focus group to reflect on their business journeys and share lessons learned from the program. Participating Nevada businesses included Cattle Bros. and Pink Elephant Kitchen of Reno, Moe’s Treats & Eats of Sparks, and Fallon Livestock Processing of Fallon. Each business received grant funding for different aspects of their enterprise and used this meeting as an opportunity to share updates on their funded projects and resulting impacts.
Participants discussed common challenges, such as marketing strategy, expanding into new markets, managing fluctuating costs and navigating grant reimbursement timelines. Yet several participants also shared how Food Business Center-supported education and funding helped them structure their operations and clarify next steps, whether launching new products, expanding delivery or increasing processing capacity.
The value of peer learning was at the forefront of the conversation. Awardees shared resources and offered practical advice on topics ranging from social media marketing to shipping and cold storage. These discussions reinforced the Center’s role not only as a funding resource, but also as a hub for connection, continuing education and capacity building among Nevada food and farm businesses.
Additional program details and a list of awardees can be found on the Southwest Regional Food Business Center website at https://swfoodbiz.org/business-builder and the University of Nevada, Reno Extension’s website at https://extension.unr.edu/food-business-center.
