Portland’s food product makers who are members of historically underserved racial, ethnic, and linguistic groups experience pervasive and chronic disparities in access to food contract manufacturers, information and resources for retail product development. Among others, recent research has identified evidence of disparities in access and outcomes in areas such as access to capital, job training and food business support. The findings raise strong concerns about persistent inequities for resources and access for people at the intersection of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and disability. Community Co-Pack NW (CoCo) will provide powerful infrastructure and a platform for systematically reducing disparities and promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. This Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (ED&I) Action Plan was developed in partnership with Multicultural Collaboration to help address this need. Action steps within each area are intended to help move Community Co-Pack NW toward a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive food ecosystem for Black + Indigenous, POC and women-led businesses in Oregon.
As a company, we will...
Employ consensus decision-making processes
Build a shared ownership model
Provide EDI Training for team members
Workforce diversity —The workforce of Community Co-Pack NW will reflect the diversity of racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural groups, and disability identities of individuals residing in Portland, Oregon.
Increase the recruitment, retention, and advancement of individuals from underserved groups as full-time and part-time employees with a particular emphasis on leadership and professional development.
Increase the number and proportion of individuals from racial, ethnic, linguistic, and disability groups entering related professions in direct service, policy, and advocacy to better reflect the diversity of the overall organization.
With our clients and community, we will...
Demonstrate the impact of participation with Black + Indigenous, POC and women-led businesses by Community Co-Pack NW’s workforce development, food contract manufacturing, aggregation of local produce from BIPOC farmers, and systems change initiatives and activities, including the implementation of this ED&I Action Plan.
Advance and disseminate knowledge and innovation gained from the evaluation of ED&I and related initiatives for people with Black + Indigenous, POC, and Women-led businesses from underserved groups throughout Oregon.
Promote the adoption of policies and legislation focused on reducing disparities and barriers to services for Black + Indigenous, POC and Women-led businesses.
Convene and provide a forum for reporting progress and updates. Additionally, Community Co-Pack NW will invest in the core functions of our mission that is so instrumental in our Equity, Diversity & Inclusion initiatives.
Develop partnerships with other contract food manufacturers in Portland to allow our clients to scale their businesses beyond Community Co-Pack NW’s capacity. We will require these businesses to sign a memorandum of understanding regarding the initiatives of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion initiatives. By holding them accountable we will ensure that we are fostering a safe and inclusive environment for our clients to transition into. Avoiding the problem of cultural misunderstandings and prejudices that distract and hinder Black + Indigenous, POC, and Women-led businesses from being successful.
The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Team will continue its role as a repository of information on equity, diversity, and inclusion, as well as a provider of technical assistance to clients of Community Co-Pack NW on reporting information requested by the ED&I Action Plan initiative.
Focus Areas
Enhance workforce diversity, and the use of systems change strategies to achieve local and state impact. Recognizing the importance of grounding Community Co-Pack NW’s efforts in partnerships with organizations whose mission is to serve Black + Indigenous, POC and Women led businesses.
Promote the systematic collection, analysis, and dissemination of disparity data across all areas of emphasis identified in the Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan to serve as a benchmark against which progress can be measured.
Over a five-year period, develop guidance to include the indicators listed in the ED&I Action Plan areas (i.e., Workforce Diversity, Cultural Competence, Local/State Impact) in the annual Program Performance Report.
Collaborate with CoCo’s Advisory Committees to identify specific goals, objectives, and actions steps from the ED&I Action Plan to incorporate into their five-year plans. Note that clients of Community Co-Pack NW are not expected to address every area or objective in the ED&I Plan, rather they should work with the leadership team to prioritize items based on their businesses assets, resources, needs, and capacity.