Michael Rozyne, Bowdoin class of 1978, visited campus recently to share his story and experience growing two social venture food businesses — Equal Exchange and Red Tomato.

Rozyne spoke about the current local and sustainable food movement in the U.S., and the issues, challenges and obstacles that must be overcome to scale up this movement. He also touched on how innovation, technology, and collaboration might come into play.

Rozyne is executive director of Red Tomato, a nonprofit that connects farmers to consumers, relying on wholesale distribution to deliver farm products to local grocery stores. Previously, Rozyne co-founded Equal Exchange, a cooperative business that trades food in a way that he says empowers both farmers and consumers.