Follow Up: July Florida Food Forum
Cottage Industry
If you were unable to attend the meeting, the full presentation is available online here. You can also view the presentation in this pdf.
To keep the conversation going, please visit our forum on Cottage Industry here to add your thoughts and comments.
On Friday, July 26th, Ann Nyhuis led the July Florida Food Forum on Cottage Industry.
During her presentation, Ann covered many topics including: where to access knowledge on Florida Cottage Food, licensing and training requirements, mandatory labeling practices, and how to stay up to date on cottage regulations.
Ann started her talk by outlining Florida’s legislative guidelines regarding cottage foods and important things to consider before starting a cottage business.
She spoke about food permits and exemptions from permits, like cottage food operations, then went into detail about approved and prohibited sales locations and methods of sales.
Next, Ann dove into an important but sometimes overlooked topic: food labels.
“Cottage Food operations may only sell cottage food products which are prepackaged with a label affixed that contains specific information (printed in English). This label must include, ‘Made in cottage food operation that is not subject to Florida’s Food Safety Regulations.’”
In addition, depending on the ingredients in the product, a business might need to apply for a wholesale or manufacturers license through the state. Because of this, Ann emphasized the importance of contacting a consumer service specialist from the Florida Department of Agriculture.
The talk continued with a lively question and answer session, where Ann continued to share her exceptional knowledge.
Ann’s presentation contained a robust amount of information about Florida’s Cottage Industry and is a great starting point for entrepreneurs looking to start a cottage operation in Florida.
Local PSA Grower, Ann Nyhuis, expanded her passion to the "glory" of sowing non-gmo seeds in harmony with nature, into best practices (no chemical use) producer of microgreens and specialty plants. Her company is further recognized as the first Certified Naturally Grown producer for eastern Florida, and has won several awards (locally and nationally) on their preserves, jams and jellies. A few are even referenced in the "Friends Share Recipes" dedicated cookbook published by the Friends of the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge. (All proceeds go towards protection of the Refuge's wildlife and the preservation of the Refuge habitat.) More recently, A Garden's Glory broadened accessibility of its vibrant, nutrient dense superfoods to "Microgreens mini-grower kits" for the home user to effectively enjoy (with ease) PIATTO FRESCO - "health...on a fresh plate"; and, trademarked a new, exclusive line of delicious preserves this year.
Visit www.agardensglory.com to learn more!
Disclaimer: The views of the presenters do not represent the views of the Florida Food Policy Council. We are a forum for the offering and sharing of information and encourage diversity and communication within the food system.