如何将农产品出售给食品分销商

Plenty ofsmall farmersget by just fine without ever selling produce or other small farm products to a food distributor. But some farms find it's a great way tomarket their productsand keep income coming in steadily on the farm.

Definition

食品分销商充当农民与客户或零售商之间的中间人。他们直接从农场购买农场种植的产品，然后将其出售给各种客户：餐馆，杂货店，超市，学校，医院和大学，食品加工者和食品制造商等机构。

Types

There are several different kinds of food distributors. Some distributors buy a mix of conventional and有机产品, while others specialize in only organics. These must be certified organic and so must the produce they buy.

如果您的农产品量更高，则食品分销商很棒。它们有助于减少您必须致力于直接营销的劳动力和当您决定直接出售农产品时会产生的其他并发症。

一些食品分销商将来到农场，拿起食物，并处理其他一切：清洁，加工和将食物交付给买家。但是，其他人可能需要您进行一些清洁和处理。您将需要研究为您所在地区提供服务的食品分销商，以找到最适合您需求的食品。

Selling to a Distributor

You will need to make sure your products and farm processes meet the distributor's requirements.

Legal product

您可以首先确保您的产品合法出售。诸如原始的事情cider, for example, may not be legal to sell in your state. You should check with your state Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services as well as the United States Food and Drug Administration to make sure that your product is licensed, labeled, and legal to sell in your state. No distributor can purchase an illegal product.

Proper documentation

这将因分销商而有所不同，但通常会涉及食品安全计划，水测试，以表明您有适当的水源来洗净农产品，产品责任保险以及证据或证明或证书或证书，以备份您提出的任何索赔您的产品（例如，organic certificationif you are selling organic produce).

包装标准

Talk with your distributors about how they need the product packaged. Distributors are handling products in bulk and need to protect it and handle it efficiently. Packing must be durable and standardized in terms of weight or count in each box.

标签

Your product must be labeled with your farm name and a lot number so that the product can be traced back to the field and harvest date, in the case of any safety or quality concerns.

提示

These helpful hints can make your first distributor relationship go more smoothly and keep your relationships strong and healthy.

Invest in a long-term relationship

Communicate clearly with distributors. Contact them in the off-season to begin your relationship and plan ahead to supply them with the product. You will need to supply your distributor with reliable availability information and don't expect to be able to dump excess produce on them.

专业

Provide your distributors with the quality product they expect. Adhere to their safety and documentation standards and their packaging and other regulations. Be clear about what you have to offer to avoid surprises on either end.

设置明确的定价

Know what price you need to get and work with the distributor if possible; some are willing to accommodate your pricing needs. Realize that you will sell to a distributor at a lower price than when you direct market. Be clear about payment terms.

Do your homework

这意味着设置商业计划and running your business professionally and properly. It means researching what products distributors want and fitting your plan to sell to distributors into your overall business plan.