Export

Lessons Learned Starting a Food Business

• Wednesday, December 8, 2021, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM

This is a free opportunity for new or planning stages food entrepreneurs to learn directly from other entrepreneurs the successes and challenges they have experienced and resources for your own business activities.

Starting a food business is an exciting adventure that many have undertaken. It requires an immense amount of multi-tasking as business owners find themselves juggling a wide variety of details beyond making the food, including product development, sourcing and marketing. 

The Harvest Kitchen at the Extension Learning Farm is glad to offer this free panel featuring the owners of 3 northern New York Food businesses. The panel features entrepreneurs in a range of business ages, from 1-10 years old, as well as a variety of products and locations. The panel will be moderated by Flip Filippi, Harvest Kitchen Manager. After a conversation with each panelist, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions of the panelists.

Featured Panelists

1. Carly Dougherty of Food and Ferments. Started in 2012, Food and Ferments products are sold direct at farmers markets as well as in over 70 retail locations in New York and Pennsylvania. This husband and wife duo decided to build their own production facility on the site of Carly’s family farm in Cortland New York. Hear from Carly how their business managed an expanding product line of fermented products such as sauerkraut and lacto fermented pickles as well as developing relationships with retail grocers.
2. Shelby Connelly of Apothecary Chocolates. Apothecary Chocolates has built several collections of artisanal chocolates including products that source ingredients from other local producers such as maple syrup, hard cider and botanicals. The business is housed within a wellness space called Five Elements Living in the foothills of the Adirondack Park. Hear from Shelby how she built a team with unique strengths to create a consistent product with attractive, impactful marketing and packaging.
3. Jordan Sauter of Red Oak Food Company. This husband and wife business was started in 2020 in the Adirondacks and they specialize in artisan bread, foraged mushrooms, miso and small-scale catering. Jordan will share some lessons learned after one year in business as well as his experience operating from a shared-use kitchen space.

If you enjoy this programming and find it helpful to improve your food or agricultural business, consider enrolling in our new Ag & Food Producer’s Academy, launching in January 2022.

This programming is part of a local initiative called Growing Resilience and is made possible by funding from the Workforce Development Institute as well as USDA Farmers Market Promotion Program.

Fee

FREE

Register

https://pub.cce.cornell.edu/event_registration/main/events_landing.cfm?event=foodpanel_240

Location

This event is online

Last updated December 8, 2021