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Most of us have it – that internal struggle between a desire to support your local coffee shop/start-ups and a love for the trustworthy, convenient cup that large corporations like provides. So imagine if you could find a happy medium – a cup of Starbucks, knowing that you鈥檙e supporting innovators and smaller companies on some level.

Sound good to you? The Seattle-based coffee empire is hoping that鈥檚 the case.

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just poured into a food startup-focused fund, Valor Siren Ventures Fund. The fund will be managed by , and will invest in companies innovating in food or retail, . The fund is working to raise an additional $300 million in coming months.

We haven鈥檛 seen too much Starbucks steam in the tech world, other than a few investments, and three acquisitions, including . Investing in a fund is a first for the company,.

The concept of corporations creating venture funds continues to gain momentum, as our own Jason Rowley reported back in September. His piece illustrates how active this sector really is while pointing out how many tech companies have entered into investment initiatives including , , and of course .

As Jason reported, part of this drive might be the realization by corporations that they can鈥檛 beat out startups when it comes to innovation. Thus, entering as financial partners might be next best option.

, president and CEO of Starbucks, Kevin Johnson, had a similar, tech-heavy mindset. He sounds right at home in the world of venture capital: 鈥淲e believe that innovative ideas are fuel for the future, and we continue to build on this heritage inside our company across beverage, experiential retail, and our digital flywheel.鈥�

He added that Starbucks is accelerating a so-called “innovation agenda” and that the entrepreneurs they鈥檙e helping may enter into commercial relationships with Starbucks in the future.

Last year, the company was shooed out of a neighborhood as a threat to 鈥渙ld-world鈥� feel and historic charm, . At the time, Starbucks said it believed independent stores and small chains can continue to grow and thrive alongside their outlets. Fast forward a little less than a year later, and it seems that Starbucks isn鈥檛 just betting that small operations will thrive, but is pouring into them with investment.

Illustration: .