Sparks, Nev. -
September 30, 2021The Nevada Department of Agriculture (NDA), alongside the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA), is seeking participants for a Farm2Food accelerator program, kicking off this November. This workforce development program is designed to help Nevada women farmers and entrepreneurs with food or beverage products or product ideas expand into new markets. The Accelerator focuses on supporting women farmers who grow specialty crops for a value-added food or beverage product or those who source specialty crop ingredients in the products they make. A value-added product is defined as a product that has changed in its physical state or form, such as milling wheat for flour or making strawberries into jam. The USDA definition of specialty crops includes fruits, vegetables, honey, tree nuts, dried fruits, culinary herbs and spices.
Selected participants will join women from Oregon and Washington for a 15-week online program at no cost thanks to funds made available through the Nevada Specialty Crop Block Grant program. The program will provide women with the to:
- Gain knowledge and tools related to food safety, product development, marketing and more
- Connect with a community of women farmers, food entrepreneurs and food experts to exchange ideas and meet peers in other states.
- Launch a new food or beverage product or enhance an existing product
“This is a great opportunity for Nevada producers and entrepreneurs,” said NDA Agricultural Literacy Coordinator Amber Smyer. “This program will support women in small-scale businesses to grow their operations, develop new business strategies and increase their chance of success.
An information session will be held virtually in advance of the program, on S Oct. 6, 2021 from 4-5 p.m.
Interested individuals can register for the session and apply for the program at f2faccelerator.org/nv-program.
About the Nevada Department of Agriculture
The Nevada Department of Agriculture (NDA) mission is to preserve, protect and promote Nevada’s agriculture. The department has 150 dedicated employees providing services in its five divisions, Administration, Animal Industry, Consumer Equitability, Food and Nutrition, and Plant Industry. The department’s $232 million budget facilitates regulatory and administrative work in agriculture and food manufacturing industries, protecting public and environmental health and worker safety, and providing food distribution and oversight for the United States Department of Agriculture’s school and community nutrition programs.