Category: Procurement

BNMC Impact Report

by Maria Morrealein Buffalo, Campus-wide, Collaboration, Entrepreneurship, Environment, Health care, Healthy Communities, Kaleida, Procurement, Roswell Park, Small Businesses

Today the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) shared its final report to the US Department of Agriculture on a multi-year Farm to Hospital project. Nine years ago, BNMC brought partners Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and Kaleida Health together with a shared vision for what a culture of fresh, healthy, local foods in healthcare systems could look like. To advance this vision, BNMC applied for and received three rounds of grant funding from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Together the partners worked to:

  • update institutional procurement and vending contracts,
  • implement a Harvest of the Month campaign,
  • host three Food as Medicine Symposia,
  • develop the WNY Food as Medicine Coalition,
  • install five new Farmhouse Fridges across campus.

As a direct result of their efforts, local procurement at Campus hospitals has increased by 333%. This matters, because for every dollar spent on local procurement (small to midsize farms, aggregators & distributors operated by our neighbors), 75-85 cents stays in the local economy when compared to conventionally sourced produce (largescale corporate food chain) where the revenue share to local farmers hovers around 14.9 cents. More data highlights are included on page 14 of the report.

The increase in local procurement meant that 42 local farmer entrepreneurs directly benefitted from the effort and grew their businesses. A further 10 local producers were able to expand their ability to sell into healthcare food systems by becoming USDA-certified in Good Agricultural Practices (GAP). Several other local businesses in processing and procurement also benefitted greatly from this work.

While the impact on local entrepreneurs in our healthcare food system is significant, campus hospitals have been able to greatly improve the quality of their procurement practices for the benefit of patient and visitor health. With new policies and operations templates in place, these practices will continue to grow well into the future.

You can read a full copy of the report here. Meet the partners, growers, and distributors in a short video here.

 About Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus  

For more than twenty years, The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus organization (BNMC) has been a driving force in Buffalo’s economic renaissance. Throughout its management of the growth of Buffalo’s premier innovation district, the BNMC has foregrounded smart economic, social, and environmental development, prioritizing health & well-being and sustainability. Today, the BNMC is focused on the next phase of Buffalo’s ongoing resurgence, cultivating inclusive innovation in partnership with our community, and launching the IC Success (Innovation Community Success) program to support aspiring entrepreneurs from all backgrounds to help them start or grow a business. Program graduates will form the heart of Buffalo’s growing Innovation Community comprised of businesses large and small in an array of disciplines leading the region’s next wave of economic development and growth.   www.bnmc.org

Connecting Buyers to Businesses at BNMC Procurement Fair on June 5th

by BNMCin Employees, Member Institution(s), MWBE, Neighbors, Networking, Procurement

Connecting Buyers to Businesses

Don’t miss the BNMC Procurement Fair on Thursday, June 6 from 2-4pm. This event is designed to introduce local minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses and buyers from large and medium-sized companies and organizations.

Who should attend:

Buyers – anyone who make purchasing decisions for their company

Women, minority, and veteran-owned businesses – Free tables for local MWBEs who want to highlight their goods or services designed for companies and large institutions

Tables are limited. Register by May 28th to reserve your space!

This free event will be held at UB’s Educational Opportunity Center at 555 Ellicott Street in Buffalo.

Free parking is available for attendees in the lot on N. Oak (off Goodell Street behind the building).

Small Businesses Invited to Connect with Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Institutions and Partners

by BNMCin Campus-wide, Community, Employees, MWBE, Procurement, Small Businesses

Small Businesses Invited to Connect with Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Institutions and Partners

Minority, women and veteran-owned businesses a focus for event that includes pitches, networking, presentations on how to do business on the Medical Campus

Small, local businesses, particularly those that are minority, women or veteran-owned, are invited to participate in an upcoming BNMC pitch, roundtable discussion, and networking session designed to connect business owners with those that make purchasing decisions for the institutions on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and partner institutions. The event is free and open to all local small businesses and buyers who make purchasing decisions.

The event will be held on Tuesday, October 23 from 1:00 pm  – 4:00 pm (registration begins at 12:30 pm) at the University at Buffalo’s (UB) Arthur O. Eve Educational Opportunity Center (EOC) at 555 Ellicott Street. The event will include brief (three minutes or less) pitch presentations by 15 local, minority and women-owned businesses, followed by a chance to informally network with representatives from the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus institutions and other participating businesses. The last session will be a roundtable discussion with representatives from UB, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Kaleida Health, and Erie County Medical Center on how to do business with each institution, as well as a chance to hear from Rodriquez Construction Group, Golden Cup, and CARA Medical about how they have been successful working with these large institutions. Interested participants can register at pitchbnmc.eventbrite.com.

The event is designed for any local and women, minority and veteran business owners who want to learn how to do business with large institutions.  Area employers are also encouraged to participate in the event.

This event is sponsored by the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. (BNMC), and UB’s Educational Opportunity Center, in partnership with UB, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Kaleida Health and Erie County Medical Center.

Connecting Small Businesses to Big Institutions

by BNMCin Campus-wide, Community, Employees, Networking, Procurement, Small Businesses, Workforce and Procurement

Connecting Small Businesses to Big Institutions

As a small business owner, it is hard to know where to start to make connections with those who make purchasing decisions for large institutions on the Medical Campus. In an effort to support local businesses and introduce them to decision makers, the BNMC and its partners created the Procurement Work Council in 2013, as an outcome of the University at Buffalo’s Opportunities Advisory Council, to find ways to better connect business owners to purchasing professionals on Campus and create business opportunities for local firms.

The Council is made up of representatives from Kaleida Health, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, the University at Buffalo, ECMC, the City of Buffalo, the U.S. Small Business Administration, among others. The goal is to learn more about local businesses and to connect them with decision makers with an emphasis on minority, women and veteran-owned businesses.

The Council hosts quarterly “BNMCWorks” events designed to showcase local businesses to purchasers, including the highly successful matchmaking networking events. These events provide an opportunity for business owners to meet one-on-one with purchasers to make a short pitch about their business and begin business relationships.

Small businesses are often invited to Work Council meetings to share their offerings and it can result in new relationships formed. In fact, a portion of the meeting is dedicated to sharing referrals and providing recommendations to other purchasing managers, helping both the institutions meet their needs and in opening new doors for local entrepreneurs.  For more information, contact Marc Pope, BNMC community project manager, at mpope@bnmc-old.local.