Virginia Agriculture & Food Entrepreneurship Program

Workshop Presentations / PowerPoint's

2009-11-24T13:19:00.001-08:00

Hello!

Thank you for your interest in the workshop series the Virginia Agriculture & Food Entrepreneurship Program. This note is to notify you of the Google Group that has been created to share the workshop PowerPoint’s.

The current homepage for this information is:
http://groups.google.com/group/virginia-ag--food-entrepreneurship-program.

Please go to the "Files" link on the right hand side to download the presentations you would like to review. If you have any questions, please contact Matt Benson at mcbenson@vt.edu or 540/341-7961.

Thank you for your interest and participation!

Sincerely,
VAFEP Planning Committee

Virginia Agriculture & Food-based Business Development Workshops- November 16 & 23, 2009

2009-09-23T09:26:00.002-07:00

October 7, 2009

The purpose of this two-part workshop series is to support new and existing innovative, value-added food processing and food production enterprises and to strengthen agriculture and food economic development opportunities in Virginia through a series of educational workshops.

This presents an excellent strategy for sustainable agriculture and local food entrepreneurs to immediately and positively impact Virginia’s economy and food system by gaining valuable information about important food safety regulations, business planning tools and local food marketing techniques.

Learning from experts such as agriculture and local food entrepreneurs, professionals at the Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Virginia Farm Bureau, Rappahannock Rapidan Health District, Virginia Tech, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia State Univerrsity, USDA and the Farmers Market Coalition will allow new and existing agricultural and food-based business developers to strengthen there knowledge and understanding of these important topics, which will ultimately help generate economic impacts for there businesses and for the local economy.

These workshops are scheduled for Monday, November 16, 2009 and Monday November 23, 2009, at the Airlie Conference Center from 9am to 4pm. The address for Airlie Center is 6809 Airlie Road, Warrenton, VA 20187. The cost to attend one of these workshops is just $40 while the cost to attend both is $80.

Pre-registration is strongly encouraged and space is limited to the first 50 individuals who register. Walk-in registrations will be considered if capacity allows. Scholarships are available to attend and will be awarded dependent on need. If you would like more information about these scholarships, please contact Matt Benson at (540) 341-7961. For more information or to pre-register, please contact Makrissa Winston at (540) 341-7961 ext. 11.

November 16, 2009: Day I- Agenda

2009-09-23T09:26:00.001-07:00

7:45am to 8:45am- Sign-in & Registration

8:45am to 9am- Welcome
Pablo Elliot, The Local Food Project at Airlie
Holder Trumbo, Chairman, Fauquier County Board of Supervisors

9am to 9:30am- Keynote: 2009 Food Safety Legislation- Understanding the Current Status
Kate Fitzgerald, National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

9:30am to 10:30am- Health Department Regulations & Certification Training Opportunities for a Food-based Business
Virginia Valentine, Rappahannock-Rapidan Health District
Beverly Samuel, Virginia Cooperative Extension

10:30am to 10:50am- Break

10:50am to 12:15pm- Short Presentations & Roundtables: Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services (VDACS) Regulations that Govern a Food-based Business
Donna Bonner (Office of Dairy and Foods), Catherine Cash (Direct Marketing- Organic Certification), Shayne Clinton (Food Safety Specialist) & Barry Jones (Office of Meat & Poultry Services), VDACS

12:15pm to 1:15pm- Lunch

1:15pm to 1:45pm- Fauquier County Sample Zoning Regulations
Deborah Dotson & Kim Johnson, Fauquier County Department of Community Development- Zoning Division

1:45pm to 2:45pm- Food Entrepreneurship & Product Testing Opportunities
Joell Eifert, Virginia Tech, Department of Food Science & Technology

2:45pm to 3pm- Break

3:00pm to 4:00pm- Food Safety Regulations that Pertain to GAPs Certification
Rob Williams, Virginia Tech, Department of Food Science & Technology
Tom Smith, VDACS

4:00pm to 4:15pm- Wrap-up & Adjourn

November 23, 2009: Day II- Agenda

2009-09-23T09:05:00.000-07:00

7:45am to 8:45am- Sign-in & Registration

8:45am to 9am- Welcome
Pablo Elliot, The Local Food Project at Airlie

9am to 10am- Keynote: Results from Alternative Agriculture & Local Food Distribution Research
Adam Diamond, USDA Agricultural Marketing Service

10am to 10:40am- Introduction to the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture Innovation & Rural Sustainability Virtual Business Center- Part I
Chris Cook, Virginia FAIRS / Virginia Farm Bureau

10:40am to 11am- Break

11am to 11:30am- Introduction to the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture Innovation & Rural Sustainability Virtual Business Center Part II
Chris Cook, Virginia FAIRS / Virginia Farm Bureau

11:30am to 12:15pm- Risk Management– Business / Product Liability & Insurance
Leon Geyer, Virginia Tech, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics

12:15pm to 1:15pm- Lunch

1:15pm to 2:15pm-

Strengthening Virginia's Farmers Markets through Grassroots Statewide Collaboration
Stacy Miller, Farmers Market Coalition

Marketing Your Food Creation: Myths, Reality and Resources
Theresa Nartea, Virginia State University

2:00pm to 3:15pm- Panel Discussion: Learning from the Field– Marketing Local Meats, Fruits & Vegetables
Deb Williamson, Farmer Girls LLC
Pablo Elliott, The Local Food Project at Airlie
Michael Clune, The Farm at Sunnyside
Doug Linton, Quarter- Mor Farm

3:15pm to 3:30pm- Break

3:30pm to 4:45pm- Panel Discussion: How to Cultivate Food Retail & Value-Added Opportunities
Hue-Chan Karels, Open Kitchen, Falls Church
Jamie Nicoll, Madison County Cannery Project
Derek Luhowiak, Local Sixfortyseven
Ken Smith, Cool Lawn Holsteins
Bernadine (Bernie) Prince, FRESHFARM Markets

4:45pm to 5pm- Wrap-up & Adjourn