During this workshop, participants will have a chance to tour SAHC’s recently certified, updated commercial-grade kitchen in action. The kitchen portion of the Education Center at our Community Farm provides a resource for farmers in our Farm Incubator Program and other community members to prepare value-added products. Not sure what you want to produce? The SAHC V.A.K. (Value Added Kitchen) is an affordable option if you are wanting to test products as well!

According to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, value-added products involve a change in the physical state or form of the product (such as milling wheat into flour or making strawberries into jam), or the production of a product in a manner that enhances its value. By offering value-added products as well as fresh produce, farmers can improve their economic productivity and extend their market season through the entire year.

Community Farm Manager Chris Link will lead the workshop, explaining the elements of the kitchen at SAHC’s Community Farm, steps involved in creating a value-added product and how you can get started producing. At this workshop, you will be able to sign up to take the first food safety and kitchen sanitation class, the first step in accessing the kitchen. The workshop is free and the food safety class costs just $30.

All are welcome!

For more info contact Chris Link at chris@appalachian.org. Pre-registration is required.

This workshop is part of Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy’s Farmer Education Workshop Series, funded in part by a grant from The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina. This work is supported by the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program grant number 2016-70017-25341  (Farm Pathways: Integrating Farmer Training with Land Access) from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.