Unit 1: Product Management


Product Management – Where Quality Becomes Your Best Asset

In this unit, we'll dive into what it takes to create top-notch products and build a reputation for excellence. You'll learn how to put quality assurance systems in place, get certifications, and follow industry standards. We'll also explore why it's crucial to keep your products safe and maintain their quality from start to finish. Plus, we'll show you how good communication and record-keeping can help you build strong, trusting relationships with your buyers. 

Quality Assurance and Standards 

Whether you are raising bison, making salsa from scratch, or growing the freshest heirloom tomatoes, quality isn't just about meeting standards. When you make quality the heart of everything you do, it becomes a beacon for loyal customers and opens doors to new markets.

 Here is how to make that happen: 

  • Your Quality Blueprint: Well-designed systems are not just a chore. Think of them as covering everything from your pasture management to your packaging process – ensuring every step contributes to the quality of your products. By sitting down and looking at all the parts of your operation, what could be improved?
  • Consistency is King: Buyers want to know who they can count on. Do you deliver the same deliciousness, responsible production, and quality every time? When others know you are reliable and care about them, they'll start caring about you.

Section 2: Certifications and Compliance 

Certifications show that you're not cutting corners, while not essential, many simply won't do business without them. 

  • Trust: GAP, USDA Organic, or other relevant certifications aren't just a sticker for cutting through red tape. They're proof that you walk the walk when it comes to safety, sustainable practices, and quality. Customers see those and know they're getting good stuff. 
  • More Than a Badge: Not only do customers look for certain certifications, but business partners too. Getting your products into new markets such as a school or hospitals may be a difficult road, made easier if they know others trust what you're making. 
  • Your Paper Trail Tells the Story: Your quality management plan shows how serious you are. It answers buyer questions, highlights your commitment, and paves the way for strong partnerships.

Section 3: Product Safety

You put a part of yourself into everything you make and grow. When customers find issues with your products, they might find issue with you.

  • Safety from the Start: Excellent quality systems address every stage of your product's journey: from how you raise your animals or grow your crops, through processing, packaging, storing, and shipping. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) brings a step-by-step approach to keeping your product safe from biological, chemical, and physical hazards. Identifying potential problems keeps your products safe and your customers happy. Every step in production is important, even the seemingly small steps can create large waves in time. 
  • Track and Improve: Detailed records help you track progress, show buyers your commitment, and let you more easily see what could be changed for even better results. In other words, if you don't know where you've been, how can you know where you're going? 

Section 4: Effective Communication and Documentation 

Let everyone know about yourself what you've made.

  • Your Story Matters: Share what makes your products and practices unique. Don't forget about what it took to get to this point. Your work and sacrifice might show through the quality of your products, but that isn't enough. Show the people your commitment and the journey you took! 
  • Records = Respect: Detailed documentation isn't just for food safety; it demonstrates your professionalism. Every purchase, delivery, change in operation, and sale are the strands that bind your business together. Your records shed light on these strands keeping partners and yourself from tripping.  
  • Have a Plan B: Things sometimes go sideways, even for the best producers. Having a plan for how you'd address any post-sale issues shows you're a pro and gives buyers confidence.