Teaching professional marketing skills to farmers and local food businesses
Local food producers looking to enter or expand into new marketing channels such as retail, restaurant, and grocery, will gain professional marketing skills at MarketReady™ training in Chillicothe, Ohio on October 21, 2019.
Increasing demand for locally produced food provides an opportunity for local producers to sell their farm fresh products direct to restaurants, grocers, wholesalers and institutions. The program, which began as a University of Kentucky initiative led by Dr. Tim Woods and piloted in cooperation with the Ohio State University Extension Ohio Direct Marketing Team in 2010, has helped hundreds of producers and local food businesses across the state since.
“[There is] tons and tons of opportunity in terms of a demand for local foods, but the challenge is just getting our producers up to speed to be able to bring the quality, consistency, and volume of product that these buyers are looking for,” Woods said.
MarketReady™ curriculum covers market evaluation, packaging, pricing, relationship building, logistics, quality assurance and other key business functions. Attendees will learn to market their products effectively from production to payment, as well as gain a better understanding of various marketing channels and how to successfully serve their channels of choice.
MarketReady™ Producer Training will be held October 21, 2019, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The cost is $25. Farm Bureau members receive a special rate of $15. The upcoming training is at the Ohio State University Extension Office — Ross County, 475 Western Ave. Ste. B., Chillicothe, Ohio. Register online at go.osu.edu/marketready.
