HARRISBURG, Pa. — PA Preferred® and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has invited Pennsylvania farmers to attend the 2018 Farm to Institution Wholesaling Workshop, which will help owners of small to mid-sized farm operations learn how to sell to institutional markets.
“Pennsylvania farmers are some of the most hard-working individuals that you’ll find, but they’re facing industry-specific challenges,” said Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding. “Programs like FIGS teach farmers the skills they need to add value to their operations, removing some of the barriers to success that the market is currently imposing.”
The workshop will be held Dec. 4-5 at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, and is available at no cost to PA Preferred members. The workshop will teach farmers how to assess the profitability of wholesale enterprises and how to build relationships with potential buyers. Attendees will also be able to:
- Work in a hands-on setting to assess their finances and discuss marketing strategies related to selling to schools and institutions;
- Interact with subject matter experts and other farmers who will share personal experiences with farm to school and farm to institution programs; and
- Learn how to determine if farm-to-school wholesale is a good fit for their business and, if so, know how to implement it.
“This workshop was really valuable for us — perhaps the most beneficial learning opportunity of all we attended last year. Specifically, the framework on how to assess profitability provided by the [instructors] as well as the spreadsheet tools were both instantly useful in our decision making for this season. As a result, we were able to make some strategic growth and pursue new outlet opportunities with confidence,” said Heidi Witmer, Executive Director & Farm Director of the LEAF Project.
Interested attendees must apply for consideration on the PA Preferred website and must have a business accounting system already in place. Learn more about Pennsylvania’s investments in agriculture at agriculture.pa.gov.
— Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture