Direct marketing workshop offers business and legal strategies for successful meat marketing

The University of Nevada, Reno University Center for Economic Development and Western Nevada College Specialty Crop Institute are offering a direct marketing workshop for meat producers, “Business & Legal Strategies for Successful Collaborative Meat Marketing.”

This is the second meat marketing workshop in a series of five to be held through June 2014.

The event will be Nov. 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Western Nevada College’s Carson City campus, 2201 West College Parkway, Carson City. Cost is $35 and lunch is included. Seating is limited, and registration is required.

“Forming partnerships with other livestock producers allows small-scale ranchers to gain some of the benefits of large companies, such as volume discounts, and provides an opportunity to share marketing and distribution costs,” Maggie W. Cowee, research analyst with the University Center for Economic Development, said.

Featured speakers Luis Sierra, Jennifer Ott and Wendy Baroli will present case studies of meat marketing collaborations, including marketing cooperatives, the potential business structures for marketing collaborations in Nevada, and methods for limiting liability.

About the featured speakers

Luis Sierra is the assistant director of the California Center for Cooperative Development where he specializes in helping agricultural marketing operations carry out alternative marketing strategies, including cooperative and multi-stakeholder initiatives. Sierra will present collaborative models used by meat producers and outline the steps interested producers can take in forming a cooperative.

Jennifer Ott is project director for the University’s High Desert Farming Initiative and a business counselor with the Nevada Small Business Development Center. Ott will provide benefits and drawbacks of cooperative business structures in Nevada.

Wendy Baroli, owner of GirlFarm/Grow for Me Sustainable Farm, raises and direct markets pigs, sheep, cows, chickens and turkeys to consumers, restaurants, and wholesale. Baroli will offer a producer’s perspective on limiting liability through insurance and contracting.

The University Center for Economic Development fosters economic development throughout Nevada by making the extensive resources of the University available to organizations and areas that can benefit from job and income creation and job retention efforts. Funding for this project is provided by the Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station, the Western Center for Risk Management Education at Washington State University and USDA/NIFA under Award Number 2012-49200-20030.

For registration information, contact Maggie Cowee at 775-784-8050 or margaretc@unr.edu.