The health-food, slow-food, boutique/artisanal/local-food movement is taking off. More and more people nationwide are swapping potato chips for kale chips and awareness about healthy eating practices is not only spreading but also trendy.

Today, crowdfunding startup CircleUp announced that it has helped five food-related businesses raise over $5 million.

CircleUp combines the popularity surrounding small-production, high-quality products with the momentum of crowdfunding. It is an equity-based platform that enables accredited investors to make direct investments in up-and-coming consumer products businesses.

The venture capital community is traditionally hesitant to put money into early consumer products companies, although these types of small businesses make up a significant portion of the economy. CircleUp features companies that are already producing and distributing their wares but are looking to scale their business and reach a larger market. It puts them in touch with interested investors who may be looking to diversify their portfolio or simply want to have a stake in something tasty.

“We love that investors are able to see, touch, taste, and experience the company’s products first hand,” said CEO Ryan Caldbeck. “An investor on our site can go to their local Whole Foods or Starbucks to see and test the products, which we believe helps the investor feel more connected to the investment that they are making. We also believe the lack of traditional funding for early stage consumer/retail products creates an opportunity unlike investments in other industries, where the risk of adverse selection for crowd funding platforms is greater.”

CircleUp shared four of the five startups that successfully raised money on its platform: Little Ducks is a Brooklyn-based company that makes no-sugar-added fruit snacks for kids; granola producer 18 Rabbits; Melt, which creates all-natural butter alternative spreads; and kale chip manufacturer Rhythm Superfoods.

Caldbeck founded CircleUp after working as a director at a private equity firm. He saw a gap in the market for this type of funding and left his job to enter the world of entrepreneurship. Since launching in 2012, CircleUp has closed 8 deals and collectively raised over $7.5 million. Read a full profile of Caldbeck on the New York Times.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, food may be the only thing more sacred than technology.

Food is a less-talked-about but equally thriving avenue of entrepreneurship in the city. To support “entrepreneur development” and the budding slow-food (as opposed to fast-food) movement, new legislation approved in September and effective from the start of 2013, allows chefs to sell food cooked in a home kitchen.

The legislation aims to “supplement household incomes, prevent poverty and hunger, and strengthen local economies.”

AB 1616 or the California Homemade Food Law relaxes the rules around community-based food production in private kitchens, provided certain regulations are met. California is taking its lead from 32 other states that have already passed similar legislation.

Caleb Zigas, executive director of La Cocina, a San Francisco-based business incubator working to assist and support food entrepreneurs, said this will enable food entrepreneurs to “test the market.” If business is booming, he suggests renting commercial kitchen space. “If you’re looking to income-patch, it [the legislation] creates a great opportunity for that.” La Cocina works with budding chefs to convert small, family-run operations into self-sustaining businesses.

Related: Read about Culture Kitchen’s efforts to connect foodies with local chefs willing to share home-cooked, tantalizing ethnic food.

For a non-professional cook from a low-income household, it means avoiding some $35 an hour to rent space in a commercial kitchen. It’s a great way to pad a family income, and food can be sold in an online store or farmer’s market.

“California has been strict in the past, but this is a great opportunity for people who love to cook,” said Neka Pasquale, founder of Urban Remedy, a San Francisco-based meal and juice delivery service. Pasquale stressed that for certain food types, it’s necessary to rent commercial space from the outset — her business requires that some of the food be kept at a frigid temperature.

To qualify to start a cooking business from home, an individual or small business owner must run a “cottage food operation,” meaning they can retain only one non-family or household employee and generate no more than $35,000 in gross annual revenue. Cooks need a registration number to conduct direct and indirect sales from home, and their kitchen will need to meet health and safety regulations.

If the food has been cooked in a private kitchen, it should say so on the tin. The words “Made in a Home Kitchen” must boldly appear on the label, with the registration number, name of the product, producer, and ingredients. The new law does not extend to products containing meat or dairy but allows for items like baked goods, granola, jams, and dried fruit.

Image courtesy of The Peninsula Press

Online natural grocery store Door to Door Organics has sowed $2 million in funding.

Door to Door Organics partners with organic farmers and creators of natural food products to deliver boxes of groceries to its customers. The company primarily focuses on produce, but its offerings also include sustainably raised meat, eggs, artisan bread, and local dairy.

The company takes the model of Community Supported Agriculture programs and puts it online.

CSA has become popular in recent years as Americans become increasingly aware of the physical and ecological benefits of consuming seasonal, local food. Traditionally, these programs require people to connect with a specific farm offline.

With Door to Door, customers can place and customize their orders online each week. They get to choose the size of the box and its contents. Families can select larger boxes than a bachelor, and someone with an aversion to eggplant can make substitutions. The company partners with multiple farms to diversify its inventory and can deliver to homes, offices, and schools.

This service cuts down on time spent going to the grocery store, and it makes organic produce accessible to people who may not otherwise be able to find it.

The foodies behind Door to Door also provide planning, shopping, and cooking tools to encourage people to live healthy lifestyles. It has recipe suggestions to go along with the boxes, as well as other suggested ingredients to prepare tasty dishes.

The network currently operates in Colorado, Chicago, Missouri, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. This first round of financing comes from Greenmont Capital, a Blouder Colorado based firm that focuses its investments on the “Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability” market.

Door to Door is based in Lafayette, Colorado.