Creating a Product Based business

Xios

Hey Guys,

Smee again, I'd like to look for advice and open a discussion on the topic, 'setting up a product centric business'.

Me and the girlfriend chatted about the idea of making/baking Granola bars and bags of trail mix etc. The product is still in development, (we're just trying different things amongst ourselves). The idea is to make a batch of product on a weekend.

How does one go about making a packaged product like this, within legal bounds and get it to market? What sort of health and safety standards would need to be met, can products be made in a home kitchen if proper procedures are followed, or do you need a 'Clean room', with aliminium counters and stuff.

Is it feasible to try and sell these sort of products online, through Adverts or my own website, or would going to local retailers be a better avenue? The online route seems more technical using google adwords, postage etc. But the local retailer seems more negotiable and we'd probably need to cut our margins substantially to be competitive.

Initially, I'd probably try target small groups, like hiking societies, sports events and small things to get people trying our product, then see how it goes from there.

Anyways, the point of this thread, as many others I post on boards, is to discuss the topic and give a valuable resource for future people searching for advice online.

makeandcreate

I recently moved to Laois and I know the enterprise there had a whole series of workshops and info about getting your home based food product to market. Might be worth checking out.
Call the HSE as well - they're not as scary as you might think.

Big Cheese

Have a look at FSA website for lots of info. No harm in giving them a call they are helpful.