View Full Version : Cottage Industry suggestion
DirtBagger
10-10-2009, 17:35
Have you ever considered cooking, drying and then shipping some of your meals -- for money, of course. It seems to me that if you posted "Who wants lasagna" there would be many folks that would send you their money. And dried meals from a cottage industry type person would be appealing. What if you prepared a menu for a weekend and took orders in advance - you could sell breakfast, lunch and dinner for a weekend trip. That would be sweet.
DirtBagger
10-10-2009, 17:36
Have you ever considered cooking, drying and then shipping some of your meals -- for money, of course. It seems to me that if you posted "Who wants lasagna" there would be many folks that would send you their money. And dried meals from a cottage industry type person would be appealing. What if you prepared a menu for a weekend and took orders in advance - you could sell breakfast, lunch and dinner for a weekend trip. That would be sweet.
Sorry about that - was not trying to take over the thread - I menat for this to be new post. Maybe the mods can move it for me.
Wise Old Owl
10-11-2009, 00:42
Have you ever considered cooking, drying and then shipping some of your meals -- for money, of course. It seems to me that if you posted "Who wants lasagna" there would be many folks that would send you their money. And dried meals from a cottage industry type person would be appealing. What if you prepared a menu for a weekend and took orders in advance - you could sell breakfast, lunch and dinner for a weekend trip. That would be sweet.
I am not against it but several others have tried and without "mass" production the effort leaves one drained.. Heard that from several WB members. Also heard hikers are too cheap for "quality ingredients"
LaurieAnn
10-11-2009, 14:01
I am not against it but several others have tried and without "mass" production the effort leaves one drained.. Heard that from several WB members. Also heard hikers are too cheap for "quality ingredients"
Not sure about the USA regulations but here in Ontario there are stiff regulations about where and how these types of meals would be prepared. That means creating "commercial" type kitchen space and having inspections. One also needs to fork out a lot of insurance in case of liability, etc. It's not something so easily done as cottage industry.
Wise Old Owl
10-12-2009, 15:10
Yea we are on the same page.
Snowleopard
10-12-2009, 15:14
This fellow posts on adkforums and his food gets good reviews there. His business started out as a hobby.
http://www.hawkvittles.com/
Dicentra
10-12-2009, 15:17
Have you ever considered cooking, drying and then shipping some of your meals -- for money, of course. It seems to me that if you posted "Who wants lasagna" there would be many folks that would send you their money. And dried meals from a cottage industry type person would be appealing. What if you prepared a menu for a weekend and took orders in advance - you could sell breakfast, lunch and dinner for a weekend trip. That would be sweet.
You have mail. :)
It isn't hard in our state for example to do pro work - all you have to do is produce in an approved legal kitchen (you can often rent them by the hour from churches or civic groups.) Basically the kitchens have to have at minimum 3 sinks, thermometers in frigs and safe dry storage and are approved by the county health department 2 to 4 times a year - they come in and check that everything is working fine. Beyond that there would be liability insurance and a business license (the smart cookie sets it up as a LLC to avoid further liability if any issues arise!)
So while it easy to get into the business.....It is a lot of work for not a lot of money back. The big companies buy so much that is how they make a profit. As well, there is the investment for a commercial sealer and pro dehydrators.
Having said that, check out Hawk Vittles as well as Packitgourmet.com - two homegrown companies doing good things. They though sell enough to make it worth the while.
I for one have nooooooo desire to do it, outside of personal favors for friends who need help.
And I forgot: a food handlers card in our state is required for all who handle food or work in places that do. It is an easy test where most counties show a video, you study a book quickly and take a simple test.
The card is cheap - $10 to 30 and lasts a couple years usually. I got my first one I think when I was 15 or 16 and you'd have to be dumber than a box of rocks to fail that test....lol!
Alligator
10-12-2009, 21:30
Would you have to create nutrition information? I have always wondered how much that might cost. More of an upfront cost but also might need further verification periodically.
LaurieAnn
10-12-2009, 21:42
Would you have to create nutrition information? I have always wondered how much that might cost. More of an upfront cost but also might need further verification periodically.
yes... and up here in Canada it also has to be billingual - bleh
Would you have to create nutrition information? I have always wondered how much that might cost. More of an upfront cost but also might need further verification periodically.
Depends on the state and size of the business.
Alligator
10-12-2009, 23:10
Depends on the state and size of the business.OK, but shipping across state lines would fall under federal guidelines most likely no?
Alligator
10-12-2009, 23:27
Yikes lots of rules (http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/GuidanceDocuments/FoodLabelingNutrition/FoodLabelingGuide/ucm064894.htm)! I see the small business link though (http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/GuidanceDocuments/FoodLabelingNutrition/FoodLabelingGuide/ucm064894.htm#declare).
Wise Old Owl
10-12-2009, 23:35
Sabar - did you see the sodium on Hawk Vittles?
Certified kitchens, inspections, insurance, long hours, hard work, little profit, food handlers card, shipping regulations, licensing, competiton, cheap hikers, nutritional analysis testing, packaging, and I'll add, the drying up of venture capital, and a slow economy, etc etc etc. Lions, and tigers, and bears oh my. Lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my. Yes, the Emerald City is far far away. But Dorothy did eventually make the long journey to see the wizard and eventually got back to Kansas. How much do you believe in your dream? To what extent are you willing to make that dream a a reality? Lots of folks with great ideas that never get wind under their wings. Of course, that's assuming you have a great idea in the first place.
Humm, DirtBagger Lasagna, you may have to change the name though!
Sabar - did you see the sodium on Hawk Vittles?
They are the one company I haven't tried out and reviewed - I need to get on it :)
cheap hikers
:D :D Yep....hiker trash - LOL!
Dicentra
10-13-2009, 10:54
:D :D Yep....hiker trash - LOL!
And you know how we luvs hiker trash. :banana