Blue Ridge Food Ventures
OVERVIEW
Blue Ridge Food Ventures is an 11,000 square foot shared-use food and natural product processing facility that offers support in product development, guidance through the regulatory maze, advice on packaging and label design, and much more.
We're here to help people who dream--of getting their artisan food products to market, of running a baking or catering business, or even operating their own hot dog cart! We also help individuals and small businesses that want to make natural products and herbal dietary supplements, and get them into bottles and tubes and onto store shelves.
Blue Ridge Food Ventures operates Winter Sun Farms--a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program that provides members with frozen fruits and vegetables from western North Carolina farmers. The sustainably grown produce is harvested at its peak, then quickly prepped and frozen for wintertime enjoyment. Once a month from December through March, members receive an assortment of diced, sliced or chopped vegetables; scrumptious berries—red, black and blue; and vegetable purees ready to become instant soups or healthy dips. Eat local all year round--from farm to freezer to your table in no time.
Part of our popular how-to series!
This class is for anyone who is thinking about starting to package, bottle, label and sell their favorite recipe. OR, it’s for those of you who are looking to start a new business but want to study the market first to determine what the next big thing will be. Topics covered will include: studying the market and developing your product; legal and insurance issues; labeling requirements; branding and marketing. The class will conclude with a “taste test” at the final session.
Wednesdays from 6-9 pm
Oct. 5, 12, 19, 26 and Nov 2.
Class Fee: $40.
This class is sponsored by A-B Tech.Click here to go to their website to register. Scroll down to the very bottom of the page until you come to the class.
Pickle School near Asheville
Fall 2010
Required for anyone making an acidifed product: pickles, relishes, many hot sauces, BBQ or tomato sauces.
We think there will be a class somewhere here in our region in late September or early October, 2010. Send them a note to let them know you want to sign up!
Contact lisa_gordon@ncsu.edu
We will be holding a Grand Open House for the new Natural Products Manufacturing Facility @ Blue Ridge Food Ventures on Monday, October 18, 2010 from 2:00-4:00 pm.
This Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)-compliant facility @BRFV is being developed in collaboration with the BioNetwork BioBusiness Center at A-B Tech and the Small Business and Technology Development Center at Western Carolina University with funding from the North Carolina Biotechnology Center and the Golden Leaf Foundation. The equipment in this space will allow individuals and small businesses to grind a variety of herb and plant materials, prepare herbal extracts and bottle, label and seal their products. Support services from the Natural Products Laboratory at the BioBusiness Center will help clients meet relevant regulatory guidelines. This joint endeavor is an integral part of efforts to develop the natural products industry in western North Carolina and to attract new businesses to our area.
Come learn how this shared-use facility will help entrepreneurs and small businesses use natural and botanical materials to create products for the fast-growing natural products and dietary supplement markets. See the equipment in action, talk with new users, and enjoy samples from Blue Ridge Food Ventures clients.
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Sign up now for the 2010-2011 Winter Sun Farms CSA.
Winter Sun Farms is an opportunity to enjoy local fruits and vegetables even in the depths of winter. We take fresh, just-picked berries, beans, tomatoes, and squash from sustainable farms in western North Carolina, freeze them and wait. Once a month from December through March, members will receive an assortment of 6-8 packages along with recipes and suggestions for ways to incorporate them into wonderful meals for your family.
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Directions
Driving directions from I-40 west bound or east bound: Take Exit 44. At the traffic light at the end of the exit ramp, turn right (south on 19/23). Go to the fourth traffic light and turn left on Sand Hill Road. Go to the second entrance on the left and turn into the campus. The Haynes Conference Center will be on your right and Blue Ridge Food Ventures in the Incubator Building on your left.
Blue Ridge Food Ventures
Testimonial
AdvantageWest and Blue Ridge Food Ventures enabled me to turn my idea for a business into a reality. You Rock!
Leslie Suber
Owner
Sadie’s Caribbean Fish Cakes
Testimonial
Using Blue Ridge Food Ventures, I was able to move quickly to get my award-winning product from testing to full production in just a year.
Ricardo Fernandez
Owner
Chef Ricardo's Authentic Appalachian Tomato Sauces
Mary Lou Surgi
, Executive Director
Blue Ridge Food Ventures
1461 Sand Hill Road
Candler, NC 28715
ph. 828-348-0128
fx. 828-348-0486
Email Mary Lou Surgi
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