ONEONTA, N.Y. — The Center for Agricultural Development & Entrepreneurship (CADE) is excited to announce a new workshop entitled “Profitable Meat Marketing” where farmers and meat producers can learn about marketing strategies as well as useful tools and software for pricing and building a profit. Meat marketing specialist Matt LaRoux will lead the workshop, scheduled to take place on Thursday, November 2 from 5pm to 8pm at the Foothills Performing Arts Center in Oneonta, NY. The workshop is free, and dinner is provided for registered participants.
The “Profitable Meat Marketing” workshop will teach participants how to develop their farm’s marketing strategy and how to set specific marketing objectives. In addition to marketing tips, instructor Matt LaRoux will talk about Cornell Cooperative Extension’s new Meat Price Calculator. The calculator uses farms’ data to develop pricing for meat sold by the hanging weight or by the cut. It accounts for processing and marketing costs, allows farmers to build in a profit, then lets them adjust the pricing of each cut until they reach their goal. Workshop participants will also learn about navigating the MeatSuite, a free website to help farms reach consumers seeking local meat in bulk.
Those interested in registering for the workshop should email corey@cadefarms.org.
This free workshop is part of CADE’s Farm and Food Business Incubator (FFBI) program. The Incubator provides business training and value-added product development facilities for new and developing farm and food entrepreneurs. Farmers looking to start, expand, or diversity their farm, or to increase farm profit, products or markets, are encouraged to register and participate in this series of free workshops.
Other scheduled workshops include “Licensing: What to Do and How to Do It” (November 13) on rules, regulations and licenses for processing livestock in New York, as well as the popular 3-part Business Plan, Financial Plan, and Marketing Plan series. The “Producing for the Hub” workshop will connect farmers to NYC markets such as farm-to-table restaurants, specialty shops, and small batch city-based processors.
All workshops are free. A partnership project between CADE and SUNY Cobleskill, the Farm and Food Business Incubator is funded by Empire State Development, a NYS economic development grantor. The Incubator received initial funding in 2016, and over 300 people have attended the workshops to date.
The full Incubator schedule can be viewed on CADE’s website at www.cadefarms.org with times and locations still being updated. You may also contact CADE for more information by calling 607-433-2545 or emailingrebecca@cadefarms.org.
—CADE Farms
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