Program Overview
The Food Venture Program – Farm to Retail includes facilitation of a dedicated program of live workshops delivered virtually on Zoom. The workshops are delivered as a sequential, laddering-up bootcamp for small or medium-sized farmers and food product owners.
Each week will include a webinar presented by food industry business mentors. You’ll have the opportunity to ask questions and receive professional advice tailored to your business, and share your experiences with other small business owners in Halton.
Note: Intake for the program will be done through an application process. If you are interested, please request an application form below. Requests for applications closes on Friday, January 28, 2022. Spots are limited!
Learning Objectives:
- Develop the skills and knowledge of how to turn a small-batch recipe into a scalable recipe for large-scale production and retail sale.
- Explore opportunities for sustainable food business practices and how to apply them.
- Understand the basics of the psychology of food branding, purchasing behavior and best practices for building a food-specific marketing strategy.
- Understand and apply principles of food packaging and nutrition labeling requirements, as per Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
- Increase understanding of principles of food safety and safe food production techniques.
- Learn the methods behind scaling a small batch recipe into a scalable recipe formulation.
- Entrepreneurs will leave with the basic knowledge to be able to finance, package, label, brand and market their own food product.
Class 1: Idea Feasibility, Food Trends and Market Research
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, February 8, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 2: Value Proposition, Competitive Analysis and Channels
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, February 15, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 3: Business Model Canvas and Flourishing BMC and Business Plan
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, February 22, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 4: Circularity and Sustainability in Food Production
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, March 1, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 5: Food Science and Recipe Development
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, March 8, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 6: Food Packaging and Nutrition Labelling
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, March 15, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 7: Sanitation and Food Safety
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, March 22, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 8: Financial Feasibility and Planning
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, March 29, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 9: Branding and Social Media Marketing
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, April 5, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Class 10: Food Product Sales and the Art of Pitching
Webinar date and time: Tuesday, April 12, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Request an Application Form