OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION

Educating Farm-Based Food Business EntrepreneursAdams, E.G.1, Hall, P.K.2

ABSTRACT

Ohio, like many other states, is experiencing growing interest in farm-based food production.  Whether producing cottage foods, meats, eggs, baked goods or produce, farm-based food entrepreneurs face many challenges and risks related to food safety, regulatory compliance, product development and legal liability. Recognizing the risks associated with farm-based food production, OSU Extension educators partnered to address the information and education needs of Ohio’s food entrepreneurs.  Educators with expertise in food science and agricultural law have collaborated to evaluate the most pressing food production, processing, and regulatory issues. The team used a variety of venues to gather information to identify the unique needs and challenges for these individuals who are beginning or expanding a farm-based food business.  The methods for obtaining the information included surveys of participants at workshops, online surveys of Extension Educators, and analysis of blog post views from the Ohio Agricultural Law Blog. Thirty-six participants completed surveys during three different workshops in southwestern, central and northeastern Ohio. These surveys gave participants open ended opportunities to indicate the most pressing concerns and desires for skills-based trainings to help start or grow food businesses. An online survey of 34 OSU Extension educators confirmed that all receive questions in their county offices related to selling foods. Also the Ohio Agricultural Law Blog post “Legally Selling Your Baked Goods at a Farmer’s Market” received 3,715 views, the third most popular post ever. These identified needs from workshop attendees, educators and blog readers were prioritized to drive the development of educational program outputs.

METHODS TO ASSESS EDUCATIONAL NEEDS

Online survey of educators• An online survey was created and sent to all OSU Extension

Agriculture and Natural Resources Educators as well as state and field specialists. Thirty-four responded to the four questions. These offered insight into the frequency of questions and types of food as well as topics that relate to selling food. This information was used to develop the Educational Needs Survey for food business entrepreneurs.

Educational Needs Survey from Workshops• The surveys were distributed at three workshops conducted

across the state of Ohio: Fresh Foods Corridor (Central Ohio), Small Farm Conference (Southwestern Ohio) and Small Farm Conference (Northeastern Ohio). A total of 36 participants responded. The survey contained two parts. The first was a rating section to self-assess the level of knowledge in various food business topics. The second half of the survey contained open-endedquestions in regards to topics the entrepreneurs wanted to learn more about as well as their most pressing concerns for their business.

Analysis of Blog views• The Ohio Agricultural Law Blog posted several articles related

to selling food during 2013. One post that address selling baked goods at Farmers Markets received over 3,700 views, an indicator that many people are interested in these kinds of regulatory topics. These topics received the following views:

Legally Selling Your Baked Goods at a Farmer’s Market 3,715 Ohio’s Home Bakery License: What’s Required? 1,376 Labeling and Packaging Your Home-Based Food Products 414 What’s Considered a Cottage Food Product in Ohio? 412 Sampling Home-Based Food Products: Keeping You 104 Responsible for a Safe Food Product

1Extension Educator, Agriculture & Natural Resources, Ohio State University Extension, Coshocton, OH 43812 adams.661@osu.edu2Asstistant Professor, Agricultural & Resource Law, Ohio State University Extension, Columbus, OH 43210 hall.673@osu.edu

CFAES provides research and related educational programs to clientele on a nondiscriminatory basis. For more information: http://go.osu.edu/cfaesdiversity.

OBJECTIVE

Determine the educational needs of farm-based food business entrepreneurs.

RESULTS

Knowledge Levels• The 36 clientele attending the workshops who completed the

Educational Needs Survey rated themselves on a scale of 0 (no knowledge) to 4 (very knowledgeable) regarding six different food business aspects. The respondents indicated that they have the most knowledge in marketing and food safety practices, with an average score just above 2. The lowest rating was for legal tools, and three other categories also were rated on the lower half of the scale. All ratings indicate that there is opportunity for increased knowledge in all topic areas.

Open-ended questions• Responses from the

surveys indicated the following specific topics that entrepreneurs need to learn more about. The larger fonts indicate multiple common responses.

• Survey responses alsoindicated the following most pressing concerns for their food business.

PLANNING FUTURE OUTPUTS

The three main areas of focus will be:Solving Problems• OSU Extension has an opportunity to encourage dialogue

regarding the lack of regulatory uniformity from county to county. There is also an opportunity to develop a centralized resource to answer many frequently asked questions.

Publications and Blog Posts• There is a need for a comprehensive regulatory library as well

as a comprehensive guide for licensing requirements. Based on feedback, specific topics for blog posts that would be useful include regulations for selling meat, direct marketing of eggs, and managing legal liability.

Workshops• OSU Extension will continue to offer programs at Small Farm

Conferences and expand the program content to address topics of interest from clientele feedback.

Food sa

fety practi

ces

Regulations

Food proce

ssing

Labelin

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Marketing

Legal to

ols0

0.51

1.52

2.53

3.54

2.17

1.47

Food Business Entrepreneurs Self-Rated Knowledge Levels