Many value-added food businesses are involved in some aspect of food processing. This may be the simple processing required to make foods available for direct marketing to consumers. Or it may involve a complex, large-scale, food processing and manufacturing business.
Owning or controlling in some fashion the processing function allows farmers to move up the food supply chain. Processing is the first step in creating a farmer-controlled and integrated food supply chain.
Because consumers ingest food products, farmer groups must take extra care in structuring food processing activities to allow for food safety and other concerns.
Information on food processing is provided in the box at the right.