What is value-added agriculture?

Value-Added Agriculture is the processing, packaging and/or marketing of agricultural commodities and farm resources in a way that allows a greater portion of the revenue derived from the product to be earned by the producer.

An example of value-added agriculture in each category follows:

• Processing — Converting tomatoes, peppers and onions into salsa.
• Packaging — Baling small, light-weight bales of clean, bright wheat straw to sell as fall harvest decor.
• Marketing — Opening on on-farm retail stand to sell produce or allowing customers to come to the farm to pick their own produce.

A farmer can add value by doing one or all of the above activities (processing, packaging and/or marketing). The value-added activity chosen is highly dependent upon the agricultural commodity, resources available and trends in the market. Adding value to an agricultural product is more similar to developing a new business product and can differ greatly from traditional production techniques. Farmers interested in developing or producing a value-added agricultural product should develop a business plan to help them evaluate if this is the best alternative for their operation.

The following are links to resources related to value-added agriculture:

Center for Profitable Agriculture http://cpa.utk.edu/

Agricultural Marketing Resource Center http://www.agmrc.org/agmrc/

Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas http://www.attra.org/