Demand for local food has increased over the last decade. Many consumers believe local food is
fresher, has less chemical contamination, and is of higher quality than imported food (Sloan 2007).
For instance, millennials—those who came of age in the early part of the 2000s—are more
concerned than previous generations about the origins of their food (Halzack 2015).
Millennials, like people across all age groups, are leading very busy lives, often with little time or
desire to cook at home. While a growing number of consumers are paying closer attention to the
origins of their food, they also want convenience built into their food choices—flavorful options
that are less perishable than farm-fresh products and require minimal preparation at home.
How do you generate more money from local beef, milk, seafood, or produce?
One way is to enhance the value of these foods to consumers. A broad view of adding value is to
transform food from its original state to a more marketable state. For instance, you could change
sensory qualities, portion size, or convenience of preparation to make products more appealing to
consumers.
Examples of increasing economic value include removing the shells from wild-caught shrimp so
the final product is ready-to-cook right out of the package, dehydrating or freezing vegetables to
extend their shelf life, or crafting cheeses or ice cream from dairy products. In each case, the
value to the customer is enhanced.
Consider attributes consumers want in their food—for example, no preservatives or genetically
modified ingredients, ease of preparation, unique flavors, or extended shelf life. By creating goods
with those desired features, producers can generate differentiated products that are no longer
simple commodities. Similar products compete against each other in the marketplace, but
differentiation allows producers to tailor their pricing and market strategy to generate consumer
awareness and loyalty. Furthermore, new ingredient and manufacturing technologies now allow
processors to meet consumers’ rising expectations for health, taste appeal, and convenience.
Manufacturing a new food product, however, is not as simple as preparing a home meal. As a
producer, you need to understand how to select, receive, portion, weigh, blend, and cook mass
quantities of ingredients using different processing technologies. You also need to know about
and comply with state and federal food-safety regulations and inspection requirements to safely
process your product and protect public health.
Assessments must be conducted to learn where to apply monitoring and control measures at raw
materials receiving and during processing and storage. These evaluations will ensure your new
products are safe for consumers to eat.
Adding Value to Local Food
Local Foods