Sydney's Food Business Training Program - Your Food Was Never the Problem

The program runs for 12 weeks — one 90-minute session per week, held in person at our kitchen in Strathfield South. The exact day and time is confirmed with each cohort before the program begins, so it works for the people actually in the room. If you miss a session, you won't fall behind — all content is available online so you can catch up in your own time. After the 12 weeks, you don't stop. You join the FoodLab graduate community with ongoing access to workshops, mentoring, and the kitchen — for one year completely free.

Workshops generally run on a weekday during business hours — the specific day and time is confirmed with each cohort before the program begins, based on what works for most people in the room. If you have a regular commitment during the week, let us know in your application. We factor availability into how we schedule each cohort, and we'd rather work it out early than have you miss sessions once you've started.

Yes - the program is designed to work around a full-time schedule. The core commitment is one 90-minute session per week. The day and time is confirmed with each cohort before the program begins, so we fit the schedule around the people in the room, not the other way around. If you miss a session, all content is available online so you can catch up in your own time. Most of our graduates were working, studying, or caring for family during the program. One session per week is all it takes.

No. Most of our graduates are not native English speakers. Every session is run in plain, simple English — written and spoken for people who are still building their language skills. We're also working on translating information into different languages. You'll be with people from similar backgrounds who know exactly what it feels like to navigate a system that wasn't designed for you. Language has never stopped a FoodLab graduate from building a business.

FoodLab is designed for people from refugee, migrant, First Nations, and low-income backgrounds who want to build a real food business — not a hobby. If any of the following sound like you, this program was built with you in mind: • you were born overseas and have experienced barriers adjusting to life in Australia; • you identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander; • food is your path to financial independence and you want it to become your main source of income; • you're already selling food informally (or even formally) and want to make it legal, scalable, and profitable. You don't need to tick every box. If you're reading this and thinking "that sounds like me" — apply. We'd rather have a conversation than have you talk yourself out of it before you've even started.

Your contribution is $350 toward a program valued at $3,500. We only ask for a contribution — rather than offering it free — because participants who invest in themselves show up differently. They complete the program, ask sharper questions, and get better results. If you finish the program and honestly feel you got no value from it, we refund the full $350. No questions asked. And if $350 is too much right now, talk to us — no one has ever been turned away for financial hardship.

Food safety is covered in depth — weeks 3 and 4 are entirely dedicated to licences, permits, council requirements and other legal requirements in NSW — but this is not a standalone food safety supervisor certificate. We can refer you to other providers for this. If you're experiencing financial hardship, we may even sponsor you to do this training. What we offer is a complete food business program covering business structure, pricing, marketing, operations, and launch. You leave knowing how to run a legal, profitable food business — not just how to pass an inspection.

The licences you need depend on what you're selling and how. Most food businesses in NSW need to register with their local council as a food business, hold a Food Safety Supervisor Certificate, and comply with Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) requirements. Some premises also require a development approval. We cover all of this in the program — and our free Legal Starter Pack gives you a plain-English checklist you can start working through right now.

Yes — especially for you. Most people selling food are doing so without the right licences, pricing structure, or systems to scale. The program takes you from "I'm already cooking and selling" to "I have a legal, scalable, profitable business." If you're already in motion, you'll move through the program faster than anyone else in the room.

That would definitely help. The most successful participants have already decided they are a food business owner. We love to see applicants with some proof of sales before joining the program. It demonstrates hustle. While we don't expect you to have a fully formed business plan, you do need a genuine interest in building your food business. Weeks 1 and 2 are designed to help you define and validate your idea. Come with curiosity — the structure will help you find clarity.

We do not turn people away based on visa status. If you're unsure whether you're eligible, apply and have a conversation with us — we'll work it out together.

TAFE food courses teach you how to cook professionally. FoodLab teaches you how to run a food business. They are different skills. A commercial cookery qualification tells you how to execute in a professional kitchen. FoodLab tells you how to price, market, stay compliant, build systems, and grow something that lasts. Everyone in our community is already an excellent cook — they come to FoodLab for the business side.

Around 20 participants per cohort. We keep numbers small deliberately — every person in the room gets real attention, not just a seat.

Life happens. If you miss a session, all content is available online so you can catch up at your own pace before the next one. We don't let one missed session become a reason to fall behind.

You'll need a phone or laptop to access content between sessions. If you don't have a laptop, talk to us — FoodLab may be able to source one for you. We don't want technology to be the thing that stands between you and your business.

We have a virtual tour of the kitchen available online - which gives you a full look at the space, equipment, and layout. Our team runs an active commercial food business and training program, so we're not always able to accommodate drop-in visits or personal tours. The virtual tour is the best place to start. Once you join the program, your kitchen induction will be your official first part of the journey.

Yes. Your kitchen induction is included in the program at no cost — you'll be inducted into our Strathfield South shared commercial kitchen as part of your training. Once inducted, you can hire the kitchen at participant rates: $118 for a 4-hour session, $205 for 8 hours, $247 for 12 hours. There's a $250 weekly cap — if you hire more kitchen time in a week than that, you only pay $250. When you graduate, those rates drop significantly: $52.50 for 4 hours, $105 for 8 hours, $150 for 12 hours — well below the going rate for commercial kitchen hire anywhere else in Sydney.

After you graduate, you get one year of access to FoodLab graduate workshops — practical sessions that build on what you learned in the 12 weeks. You join a growing community of graduates who share opportunities, refer customers to each other, and show up when things get hard. And you get access to our Strathfield South shared commercial kitchen at 50% below Sydney market rates — a professional space to keep cooking, testing, and growing.

FoodLab Sydney is a registered not-for-profit and charity (ABN 58 657 479 564), verified through the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission. We run our own active corporate catering business — serving organisations including Sydney Airport, SBS, Mirvac, and NSW Treasury. We have graduated 30 food business owners since we registered as a charity in 2022. 96.4% of them are still actively trading 12 months later. We have no commercial motive to teach you anything other than what actually works.

The application is here and takes five minutes. There's no commitment beyond submitting — just a short form about your business and background. We'll follow up with a conversation to make sure the program is the right fit. Applications for the current cohort close May 4. Program starts May 18. Spots are strictly limited.

Absolutely — and frankly, we'd love more of you. Around 70% of our applicants come from a baking and sweets background, which means the market for authentic savoury and cultural food is significantly less crowded. If you make biryani, injera, dumplings, jerk chicken, bao, tamales, or the kind of dish that people have been asking you to sell for years — we want to hear from you. FoodLab exists to help food from every culture find its place in Sydney's food industry. If people love what you cook, that's enough to start. If you're making sweets, cakes and bakery items - you are still welcome to apply, but the competition is fierce, and it is harder to join the program.

We receive more applications for each cohort than we have places, and we review every one of them. When you submit your application, you'll receive an acknowledgement email straight away — if you haven't received that, check your junk folder first. We aim to follow up with all applicants within two weeks of our intake opening. If you haven't heard from us after that time, you're welcome to contact us with your full name and the date you applied. Please note that our team is running an active commercial kitchen and training program — we may not always be able to respond to follow-up messages sent through the website or to drop-in visits at the kitchen. Submitting an enquiry is the most reliable way to reach us.