ITHACA, NY.  — Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement (CREA) has opened applications for its Dairy Runway entrepreneurship program. The program, which launched in 2023, seeks up to six food entrepreneur teams with “early-stage ideas for value-added dairy products.”

The Fall 2025 cohort allows participants located anywhere in the Northeast formulating value-added products using cow, goat or sheep milk produced in the 11-state region, according to the program.

Cornell’s program is a seven-week virtual course that will introduce entrepreneurs to the customer delivery process.

Entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to enroll in self-directed online learning activities along with Zoom-based class meetings and one-on-one meetings with instructors.

Classes will feature speakers in categories including creative marketing agencies, retailers and other food and beverage startup founders.

Entrepreneurs who complete the entrepreneurship course will then be moved to the Kitchen Incubator phase. The Kitchen Incubator phase offers entrepreneurs the opportunity to be paired with business coaches to work on business models and develop pitch decks for potential investors. The phase also allows entrepreneurs to begin testing their product formulations and build a prototype in the university’s food processing facilities.

“The Dairy Runway program gives entrepreneurs the opportunity to pressure test a concept with business and technical guidance,” said Sam Alcaine, director of the NDFRC and Cornell CALS faculty adviser for the program. “Whether working with cow, goat or sheep milk, participants gain access to research-backed insights and pilot-scale resources that can help transform promising ideas into quality products.”

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