Meals entrepreneurs know that buyers respect the “magic” that turns freshly picked strawberries into cookie-worthy jam, however additionally they know that following the principles for secure meals processing is crucial to creating value-added merchandise.
In Arkansas, the Meals Freedom Act permits producers to promote do-it-yourself merchandise to the general public. The method of making and processing uncooked elements right into a value-added product has its challenges.
“Do-it-yourself meals merchandise will be extraordinarily useful to each the producer and the patron as a consequence of their greater market worth and, in some instances, longer shelf life,” stated Renee Threlfall, a analysis scientist within the division of meals sciences on the College of Arkansas System Division. Agriculture. “However you will need to make sure that gadgets bought below the Arkansas Meals Freedom Act are processed accurately.”
Threlfall will talk about value-added meals manufacturing from residence to industrial throughout the third webinar of the three-part program “Plan. Produce. Win.” Webinar Sequence, “Plan. Produce. Revenue: Creating and Processing Worth-Added Meals Merchandise in Arkansas.”
The free webinar will happen at 11 a.m. on February 14. Registration is obtainable at https://nationalaglawcenter.org/webinars/ppp3/.
Threlfall was not too long ago acknowledged with the John W. White Award for Excellent Staff: “Worth Added Meals Manufacturing” on the 2024 Agriculture Awards. NALC Senior Lawyer Rusty Rumley, who introduced the primary “Plan. Produce. Revenue.” webinar, he’s additionally a member of that award-winning workforce.
The “Plan. Produce. Win.” The webinars, that are designed for Arkansas specialty crop producers, are facilitated by the Nationwide Agricultural Regulation Middle and the College of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. The displays present obligatory data on tips on how to function throughout the Arkansas Meals Freedom Act and are a continuation of the Plan. Produce. Income. Final 12 months's sequence.
The sequence is funded by the Arkansas Division of Agriculture by the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.
ARKANSAS FOOD FREEDOM ACT
Act 1040 of 2021, which grew to become referred to as the Arkansas Meals Freedom Act, permits Arkansas residents to promote extra forms of do-it-yourself meals and drinks in additional locations than earlier than and permits direct gross sales of sure meals and beverage merchandise do-it-yourself ones that require no time or temperature checks to stay secure. Some merchandise, resembling pickles, sauces, and canned greens, could require pH testing or pre-approved recipes.
Rumley introduced the primary webinar, “Legal responsibility Points in Meals Processing Beneath the Arkansas Meals Freedom Act.” A recording of the presentation is obtainable on-line.
The second “Plan. Produce. Revenue.” The webinar is titled “An Overview of the Arkansas Meals Freedom Regulation” and was introduced by Jeff Jackson of the Arkansas Division of Well being. A recording of the webinar is obtainable on-line.
For details about the Nationwide Agricultural Regulation Middle, go to nationalaglawcenter.org or observe @Nataglaw on X. The Nationwide Agricultural Regulation Middle can also be on Fb and LinkedIn.
For updates on agricultural laws and coverage developments, subscribe at no cost to The Feed, NALC's publication highlighting latest authorized developments going through agriculture, revealed twice a month.
Tru Joi Curtis works within the Division of Agriculture of the College of Arkansas System.