Hi everyone, I have a wicked chicken recipe for the bbq. Everyone loves it. I was wondeeirng what the steps would be to start a mobile bbq where I could take it to places and sell my chicken. So... after buying a grill... what are tehsteps to do it properly and legally? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

I'm sure you have to contact the local health department.

It's true that you would have to contact the local Health Department.

I do like the information that is contained on the following link and the content of which is quoted below it.

Food Entrepreneur Resource Center (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/basics/basics.html)







Specialty Food Business Basics
This Section of the Food Entrepreneur Resource Center is intended to give you an overview of the business. The pages in this section address challenges and rewards, helping to answer the question, "What is the Specialty Food Business, and do I want to be in it?"


Contained in this section:

Assistance (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/basics/basics.html#assistance) - discover what assistance NECFE at NYSFVC provides to its clients. Includes links to facility information.
Pros and Cons (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/basics/basics.html#proscons) - Itemizes some of the rewards and challenges of being a Specialty Food Entrepreneur
Steps to Start (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/basics/basics.html#steps) - Lists the common steps in starting a Specialty Food Business



Assistance and Facilities

The Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship at the New York State Food Venture Center offers assistance in the following areas:


Product and Process Safety Evaluation

Regulatory Compliance

Process Development and Recommendations
Shelf-life analysis, Test-production facilities

Processing Operations Assistance
Referrals to Co-Packers, Labeling Assistance, Suppliers

Business Assistance/Referrals

Laboratory Assistance/Referrals
Microbial, Chemical, and Physical Analysis

Certification and Training
Many services, including initial consultation, reference lists and referrals are provided free of charge. Services for which we charge include: process approval and filing, amendments & filing, laboratory work, etc. The rate for these services is $50.00 per hour. We also provide access to our Pilot Plants, which are certified for commercial food production, to help entrepreneurs do their test batches. The fees for Pilot Plant use vary.
Facilities

Through NECFE at NYSFVC, clients have access to the following facilities:
Fruit & Vegetable Pilot Plant (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/fst/pilotplant/index.html), Geneva NY
Food Processing and Development Laboratory (http://foodscience.cit.cornell.edu/fpdl/fpdl.html), Ithaca NY
USDA Approved Meats Laboratory (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/cifs/fvptg/meat.html), Ithaca NY additional pictures (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/facilities/meats_pics.html)
Vinification and Brewing Technology Laboratory (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/vb), Geneva NY
Dairy Pilot Plant, Ithaca NY
In addition, one of our consulting members is the Vermont Food Venture Center (http://homepages.together.net/%7Eedcnv/food/).




Pros and Cons of Starting a Specialty Food Business


The specialty food business can be rewarding and exciting. It can also be a real struggle. Listed below are some pros and cons of starting and running your own specialty food business. The list is intended to provide a realistic picture of specialty food manufacturing. Keep in mind that several of the items listed are qualitative, that is, their importance depends largely on how strongly you feel about them.

Advantages:

Being your own boss.
Creating your own work environment: hours, flexibility, etc.
Doing something in which you believe
Reaping the benefits of hard work and long hours directly.
Variety, challenges, and opportunities for creativity, full use of knowledge
More open earning and growth potential
Satisfaction of a successful venture, a product well received
Empowerment
Disadvantages:

Risk of failure
Time Commitment — 60-70 hrs per week is normal
Financial strain as assets become tied to business start up and success
Strain on family due to financial and lifestyle change
Emotional burnout
Unavoidable business roles/requirements you’d rather not fill
Rejection of your product by consumers
Should you decide to pursue a specialty food business start up, there are a number of things you can do to minimize risk and maximize your chance of a successful, rewarding venture:

Develop a Business Plan
Regularly review your business plan to remind yourself of goals and maintain focus
Develop a marketing plan
Learn and follow food regulations and requirements
Maintain accurate, current records
Analyze your financial status on a regular basis and make necessary adjustments
Comparison shop for quality inventory in a timely fashion
Learn to recognize and solve problems promptly
Draw a line between your personal life and your business life and stick to it



Steps to Start a Specialty Food Business
Introduction:
The following is a list of the basic steps to starting a specialty food business. While each specialty food business is unique and subject to specific product requirements, the list below outlines the overall process. The steps are grouped by topic. Keep in mind that each topic effects the others: your product type and packaging will effect your labels; the ingredients to make your product will effect your cost and production plans.
The Product

Develop a prototype. Test it out on people. Collect and incorporate feedback on flavor, texture, and appearance.
Determine the market form you would like the product to have: shelf-stable, refrigerated, frozen, baked, canned, etc.
Determine the batch size you will need for commercial operation. A good start-up size for a liquid product (dressings, etc.) is 5-10 gallons. For solid product, consider a 15-25 pound batch.
Consult a Process Authority (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/glossary.html#procauth) to scale up your recipe. Take the following into consideration:
- The formulation may change due to regulatory and food safety requirements.
- Testing (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/product/required.html) (pH, water activity, etc.) may be required for compliance with regulations.
- It may take several attempts to achieve a scaled-up product comparable to the original; ingredient amounts will not change proportionately. For example, you may double the tomato sauce in a BBQ recipe but find you only need to slightly increase the amount of garlic.
Get approval for your recipe from a Process Authority. This resulting document, a Scheduled Process (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/glossary.html#chedproc), will help avoid product safety and quality issues.
Determine the cost of ingredients based on your approved, scaled-up recipe.
Business Planning

Write a Business Plan (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/glossary.html#b). It will help you focus your business goals and determine if you need funding.
Consider liability insurance. It is affordable and can protect personal assets in the event of a problem with your product.
Determine a form for your business: sole proprietorship, corporation, partnership, limited liability, subchapter(s) corporation.
Register your business with the state.
Get assistance from business resources: state agricultural departments, state extension organizations, SBDCs, SCORE, NECFE, local economic development agencies. (Click here (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/reg/reg_main.html) for a agency information.)
Labels

Decide on a product name.
Determine applicable regulatory requirements. Ask your state regulatory officials for help or contact (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/contact.html) NECFE at NYSFVC. Consult the FDA Food Labeling Guide (http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/%7Edms/flg-toc.html).
Determine what storage information must be on your package: refrigerate, refrigerate after opening, etc.
Choose a size and shape which is compatible with your packaging.
Invest as much in your labels as possible. They are the first thing customers will see.
Make test labels, or labels for small, initial, batches, on a computer printer to cut costs.
Decide if you wish to make health claims. If you do, you must have nutritional analysis done and invest the time and money for FDA compliant nutrition labeling.
Decide whether or not to invest in a bar code. The registry fee is $500, but most large stores and chains will not consider your product without one. If you do not plan to sell to large distributors, you don’t need one.
Market Decisions

Write a Marketing Plan (http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/glossary.html#m). It is a framework for research on competition, ceiling prices, target markets, etc. and structures your marketing goals and methods.
Decide where you will sell your product. Generally, start off small — at farmers markets, fairs, road-side stands, etc. These are also good places to test market your product.
Determine a selling price for your product, taking the competition and your financial needs into account.
Develop a distribution method: your car, the mail, a fellow specialty food entrepreneur, distributor, broker.
Production

Decide where you will produce your product: commercial kitchen, pilot plant,
co-packer.
Find storage space for ingredients, packaging, and the final product.
Schedule time with experts at the production facility to learn about equipment.
Determine when, based on ordering supplies, you can produce and package product.
Schedule time at a processing facility to produce your product.