The University of Missouri Extension Office will be hosting a five-class series to give information to producers who are interested in selling food at local farmers markets.
A news release from the Polk County MU Extension said that these classes will teach farmers about state regulations, food prices, sales tax, sales boosts, and produce incentive programs.
The courses will take place from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday through Friday, Jan. 23 through Jan. 27 via Zoom.
Sessions include the following topics:
January 23: Food pricing and sales tax at farmers markets; available resources for producers through MU Extension and Missouri Department of Agriculture.
January 24: Supplemental Nutrition Program (SNAP) and Double Up Food Bucks
January 25: State regulations for selling meat and eggs at farmers markets
January 26: Missouri’s cottage food regulations
January 27: Missouri Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program and WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers
Classes will be taught by representatives from the MU Extension Food Systems Network, Missouri Department of Agriculture, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, MarketLink, and the Mid-America Regional Council. The series is sponsored in part by the Missouri Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program (SARE).
“This series will help farmers and other food producers gain knowledge to help them sell their food products at farmers markets,” said Leslie Bertsch, member of the MU Extension Food Systems Network.
Participants will be able to ask questions and will be able to access the recordings for all sessions, except for Friday’s session, for a limited amount of time after the live sessions take place.
Vouchers from the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program and WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Program can only be accepted in the Zoom class on Friday, Jan. 27 or a session through the Missouri Department of Agriculture.
The cost to attend all sessions is $10. To participate in the training, individuals can register by visiting extension.missouri.edu/, clicking on the Events tab, locating the event title “Selling Food at the Farmers Market 2023,” and completing the registration information.
