A Good Idea Around the Table

Centre Kitchen Collective grew out of a lot of conversations about food, farming, and community.

In March 2020, as the COVID crisis turned our world upside down, Sabine Carey founded Centre Markets to help local farmers keep selling their products and connect families with fresh, locally grown food. What began as an emergency response grew into a year-round local food market, bringing together farmers, producers, and customers throughout central Pennsylvania.

Meanwhile, Elaine Meder-Wilgus, owner of Webster's Café & Bookstore in State College, had long been creating a gathering place where food, conversation, and community come together.

Through our work, we saw many of the same challenges facing local food producers: wonderful ingredients, creative people, and plenty of good ideas, but not always the facilities or resources to take those ideas further.

So in 2023, we joined forces and founded Centre Kitchen Collective.

What started as a conversation has grown into a rather ambitious project. And we're excited to see where it takes us!

Good Food Connects Us

We believe in the people behind our food.

The farmers who grow it. The makers who turn simple ingredients into something delicious. The entrepreneurs willing to take a chance on a new idea.

We believe small food businesses deserve opportunities to grow, that good local food shouldn't go to waste, and that working together makes all of us stronger.

That's what Centre Kitchen Collective is all about.

Rooted in Pine Grove Mills

Our home is a historic building in the heart of Pine Grove Mills, Pennsylvania.It's a place with a long history of serving the community, and we're delighted to be part of its next chapter.

Centre Kitchen Collective is developing the shared commercial kitchen, while our neighbors at Centre Markets operate a year-round local food store in the adjoining space.

We're two separate organizations with a shared enthusiasm for local food, and plenty of opportunities to work together.

We can't think of a better place to bring this idea to life.