When thinking of food businesses, a restaurant or farm probably comes to mind first. But what about all the other ways we get food? Local catering, bakeries, food trucks, prepared meals, processed goods like pickles and sauces, and food pantries are essential food sources in King County. Behind the scenes, many of these food businesses rely on commissary kitchens to operate.
Commissary kitchens are shared-use, licensed commercial kitchen spaces available for rent. They are key for new and small businesses to be able to access infrastructure such as specialized appliances and cold storage, especially for businesses with limited capital access. Access to commissary kitchens can make it easier for more local food businesses to start and grow. However, most commissary kitchens in King County are at capacity.
Recent studies by Public Health – Seattle & King County consistently found that commissary kitchen access is essential to small food business viability, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that access to those resources can be a major challenge.
“Not only does King County need more commissary kitchens, access to existing commissary kitchens must be improved,” notes a recent report written by Mary Fudge, a University of Washington Master of Public Health student working in collaboration with Public Health – Seattle & King County. According to Fudge’s research, the average cost of kitchen space in King County ranged from $350 per month for part-time access to over $7,000 for 24/7 access. These fees are not affordable for many food businesses, especially nascent enterprises with little access to capital,”
In response to this need, King County recently launched a new tool to assist food business operators in their search for commissary kitchen space. The commissary kitchen map includes commissary kitchens identified and validated through Public Health – Seattle & King County’s studies, alongside information about rental rates, equipment available, and hours.
While commissary kitchen access remains competitive, the hope is that the new tool will allow business owners to “shop around” for kitchens that fit their needs and budgets. Currently, the map includes 25 kitchens listed across the Seattle area. Contact information is provided for each location, streamlining the process of finding kitchen space.
This new commissary kitchen map is one facet of a broader push for technical assistance for small food businesses in King County. Alongside kitchen access, technical assistance to navigate issues such as permitting and bookkeeping has been identified as a major need of food business operators.
Public Health – Seattle & King County continues to work alongside small business owners to develop tools and processes to make participating in the local food economy safe and accessible for everyone. The new map is another step towards bringing information and awareness of unsung parts of our food system, such as commissary kitchens, to more people.
As Fudge concludes, “King County’s local food economy could benefit from more available food systems infrastructure such as commissary kitchens. With this map…hopefully these spaces will be more accessible to the public.”
Explore the commissary kitchen tool at kingcounty.gov/commissary.