As part of two separate initiatives, state governments in Ohio and Tennessee recently worked to provide growth opportunities for many in the specialty food industry.
On Monday, local businesses and vendors began offering made-to-order food at farmers' markets in Tennessee, made possible by Senate Bill 1049 which amended a previous bill that covered the types of food permitted to be made available at farmers' markets.
The bill provides requirements for made-to-order food products, requiring samples to be prepared on clean surfaces, and for the food to be safe for human consumption, for example. To offer made-to-order food, vendors have to pass an inspection and pay a $300 permit fee.
“This will be just an amazing opportunity to introduce our Cuban sandwiches to more and more people. It’s truly going to be a good thing,” Ernesto Rodriguez, owner of Pastelito’s Cuban Bakery, a vendor at a farmers' market in Market Square in Knoxville, Tennessee, told local news source WVLT.
On Tuesday, Ohio partnered with the USDA to award $12.4 million to strengthen food supply chain infrastructure in the state, under the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program. The grant will fund projects that are designed to build resilience across parts of the supply chain.
“This partnership between USDA and Ohio is allowing critical funding to reach areas of the supply chain that need it most,” said USDA Marketing and Regulatory Programs Under Secretary Jenny Lester Moffitt in a statement. “The projects funded through this program will create new opportunities for the region’s small and midsize producers to thrive, expand access to nutritious food options, and increase supply chain resiliency.”
Ohio is accepting applications through March 15.
Related: California Animal Treatment Law Goes Into Effect; Iowa, Nebraska to Skip Food Assistance Program