Starting a Commercial Food Business

Course Overview

The transition from cottage to commercial food production entails new regulatory requirements and food safety considerations. To be successful, however, entrepreneurs must also learn and apply industry standards for distribution, food retail, manufacturing, marketing and financing to their business plan. The Starting a Commercial Food Business training is designed to give food entrepreneurs the information needed to operate a successful food business. Entrepreneurs will be guided through completing an optional business plan during the course. After the course, registrants will be connected to a local Product Center Innovation Counselor who will work with them on their action items. Entrepreneurs will leave the course with food industry knowledge, their business plan and access to no-cost food business counseling.

Click here to watch a short video about the course. Click here for a list of course content in the class syllabus.

Cost:

$150 for non-Product Center clients (registration comes with a $100 application fee waiver, embedded at the end of the course)
$100 for Product Center clients

Course Format

Self-Paced Online Course

REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS (FOLLOW STEPS 1-3 BELOW)

To register for this course you will need to create an account, sign in with your email/password, and complete the registration process. To watch a video tutorial, demonstrating an overview of the registration process, click on the following link: Online Course Registration Video Tutorial. Step-by-step instructions are below.

STEP #1: Create your Michigan State University Guest Account by following the instructions on this website: MSU Guest Account Creation Page. (For detailed instructions visit the following web page: Instructions: Creating Your Guest Account.)
STEP #2: Login to the registration system with your Guest Account (your email) and Password: Starting a Commercial Food Business
STEP #3: Follow the instructions to register for the course. Upon registration, you will receive a receipt and instructions for accessing the course.

*If you need to reset your password at any time go to https://auth.msu.edu/ and select the option for "Need help Signing in."

More Information

For more information, please contact Parker Jones at jonesp28@msu.edu.

Technical Assistance

If you have any technical problems, please contact the Michigan State University IT Service Desk from 7am-12am Monday through Friday and 10am-12am on Saturday/Sunday, any day that the University is open.

Phone: (517) 432-6200
Phone (toll free): 1 (844) 678-6200
Email Web Form

Frequently Asked Questions

What is my username/NETID?

Your username (or NET ID) is the email address you used to create your account during registration (you use the same email address/password for registering and for taking the course).

What URL do I go to for logging into the course?

Go to: https://d2l.msu.edu/. You will see the Michigan State University at the top of the page. Login with the email address and password you set during the registration process.