North Bay Food Industry Group links with Naturally Boulder's fast-growing manufacturer network

The North Bay Food Industry Group (FIG) will soon have a national reach.

The association announced Thursday it is becoming an affiliate of Naturally Boulder, an economic-development initiative that serves as a voice for the natural products community in Colorado.

The two nonprofit trade organizations have worked together for many years and share similar missions, said Carolyn Stark, executive director of North Bay FIG.

On March 7, during Natural Products Expo West trade show in Anaheim, Naturally Boulder will announce the formation of “Naturally Network,” a nonprofit network of regional organizations devoted to promoting the integrity and growth of the natural products and specialty-food industry, Stark said.

North Bay FIG is the second California organization to affiliate with Naturally Boulder. Naturally Bay Area, based in San Francisco, became an affiliate last year, she said.

“We’re joining another organization to create a national network, which will benefit our region and our members by raising awareness of the natural products and specialty-food industry,” Stark said. “This also gives us the ability to work with industry thought leaders on issues affecting our industry.”

Other new affiliates include Naturally Chicago and Naturally Austin.

Naturally Boulder, formed in 2005, is a 501(c)(6) organization with about 1,000 members and more than 100 sponsoring companies.

“They have been approached by other organizations like FIG around the country to replicate their model because they do it so well,” Stark said, adding that Naturally Boulder and FIG started talking last year about creating an affiliation.

FIG, which has 65 member-companies representing thousands of North Bay employees, was formed in 2013 starting as a group within the Santa Rosa Metro Chamber. In 2016, it spun off as a 501(c)(6) organization, with long-term financing support from the following companies: Amy’s Kitchen, Clover Sonoma, Cowgirl Creamery, Guayaki, La Tortilla Factory, Redwood Hill Farm & Creamery, Straus Family Creamery, North Coast Manzana and Traditional Medicinals.

“North Bay FIG will continue to be an independent, locally based nonprofit organization, but will join a growing brain trust of industry leaders working to inspire and guide the future of our industry,” stated Blair Kellison, CEO of Rohnert Park-based Traditional Medicinals and chairman of the North Bay FIG board of directors, in the Thursday announcement.

The board of directors foresees many benefits for members, including the ability to collaborate with Naturally Boulder and other regional affiliates on public policy issues, participate in the creation of a “Naturally Network Job Board” that will have national reach, share educational content, and dialog with other regional affiliates, thus expanding the repertoire of industry best practices which has always been the foundation of FIG, according to Stark.

“I think this is very exciting because it’s a wonderful opportunity to increase the value of membership in the food industry group,” Stark said. “Now we will have a national voice through our affiliation.”

Show Comment