Fair Food Network to Move National Office From Ann Arbor to Detroit

Move Reflects Nonprofit’s Extensive Work, Partnerships and Involvement in Detroit, Comes in Response to Staff Survey and Feedback

15 March 2023 | DETROIT, Mich.—After spending more than 10 years based in Ann Arbor, Fair Food Network, a national nonprofit and investor with a mission to grow community health and wealth through food, will move its headquarters to Detroit in April 2023. Along with welcoming new CEO Kate Krauss in January 2023, this move is part of Fair Food Network’s next chapter as it continues to grow as a national investor and innovator in creating resilient food systems in Michigan and beyond.

“Fair Food Network will keep roots in Ann Arbor as we move our headquarters to Detroit and grow deeper connections in the city,” said CEO Kate Krauss. “Creating a work environment that is vibrant, supportive, and reflective of our mission has been a priority for years, so when employee feedback suggested we reconnect in person in Michigan’s largest city and one of the epicenters of food and culture in our state, it was a natural next step. We will continue to work closely with our partners across Michigan, and nationally, to improve healthy and affordable food choices, invest in farmers and local food businesses to become engines for positive economic change, and grow ecological resilience as an integral part of community health and wealth.”

Fair Food Network’s signature nutrition incentive program, Double Up Food Bucks, started in Detroit where it was first piloted in five farmers markets in 2009. Double Up has since spread to more than 250 participating farmers markets and food retail locations across Michigan and been adopted by partners in 30 states across the country, improving healthy food access from coast to coast.

The nonprofit has also invested in food businesses in the city to support them as they provide nourishment to their community and grow economic opportunities where they live. In the past 10 years, Fair Food Network has made 37 total investments in food businesses, including 10 investments in Michigan and four within the city of Detroit.

Employee feedback helped guide the decision not only to return to in-person work but to reconnect in the city where lively restaurants and Tigers Stadium are within walking distance and where staff can directly see the impact of their work at a larger scale. With many Southeast Michigan Fair Food Network staff members living within city limits, team members will be able to connect outside of the office and take advantage of walking, biking, and public transportation.

Fair Food Network adopted a hybrid work schedule during the pandemic but will transition to more in-person work in 2023. After surveying staff, the People and Culture department noted a significant desire among the employees to grow greater collaboration and build stronger staff connections following years of remote-to-hybrid work. The office move is one of many ways the nonprofit aims to enhance staff connectivity among team members living in Michigan and across the country.

Media Contact:
Andi Nank
anank@fairfoodnetwork.org
734.213.3999 x221