When Connor Haren purchased what was then the Troy Meat Shop at the age of 20, he saw the potential to bring healthy, locally sourced food to the Troy, Ohio community. With that vision, Haren’s Market was born and thirteen years later, it is still thriving — and not just because of the quality of the meat and produce.
Commercial kitchens come in all sizes, but it’s not uncommon for independent restaurants to have smaller ones. According to Webstaurant, commercial kitchens range from 500 to 2,000 square feet with anything less than 500 square feet considered small. That space comes with certain advantages and disadvantages.
At Victor Central School District, they have a saying: “Fresh is Best” — and they lead by example for their pre-K to twelfth grade students. Their food service program consists of 25% of from-scratch menu items with ingredients sourced from local farms, with many of those being served in the high school cafeteria. They have the goal of reaching 40% by the end of the school year and expanding more...
