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  • Newly Updated Free GUIDE – How to start your Food Business in Massachusetts

    December 7, 2021

    Local growers and food businesses have been in the spotlight lately. Their resiliency is an integral part of the Massachusetts food system. The newly released Massachusetts Food Processors Resource Guide supports new and growing value-added agricultural and entrepreneurial food businesses.   

  • tomatoes being processed at Western Mass Food Processing Center

    Food Transformation

    What is a value-added food product, anyway? According to the USDA, “Value-added products are raw agricultural products that have been modified or enhanced to have a higher market value and/or a longer shelf life.”  Think of fruits made into jams or pies, wheat turned into flour, or tomatoes and peppers becoming salsa.

  • Individually Quick Frozen blueberries

    Got Local Fruit and Veggies in Your Freezer?

    How far does a blueberry travel from a local bush to your home freezer? Normally not a very big journey. But finding out whether or not those same blueberries can be frozen and sold commercially in your local market is proving to be a long a winding road.

UMass Value-added Food Program