• Legal Guide for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products in Alabama

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  Aquaculture producers seeking to diversify their businesses through direct marketing will encounter a confusing, and at times contradictory, maze of federal, state, and local food safety, tax, and environmental laws. The legal framework for direct sales of aquaculture products is further complicated by the differing treatment of freshwater and marine species, both of which are cultured in Alabama. To assist Alabama producers in their direct marketing efforts, the NSGLC prepared a Legal Guide for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products in Alabama to support aquaculture producers in Alabama looking for ways to diversify their business with direct marketing opportunities.

• Download "Legal Guide for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products in Alabama" PDF

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  Tips for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products at Alabama Farmers Market - Webinar:
  August 21, 2014 at 1:00 p.m. (CST)

• The National Sea Grant Law Center and the National Agricultural Law Center sponsored a webinar, "Tips for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products at Alabama Farmers Markets," on August 21, 2014. The webinar provides information on selling aquaculture products at farmers markets in Alabama. Speakers include Phyllis Fenn, standardization officer at the Alabama Department of Health and Heather Pritchard, market manager of the Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market. The webinar is part of a project funded by the Southern Risk Management Education Center. The project is aimed at helping Alabama aquaculture producers diversify their operations through direct marketing. Project partners include the University of Illinois Extension; Auburn University School of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences; the Aquaculture and Fisheries Business Institute; Alabama Cooperative Extension System; and Auburn University Marine Extension and Research Center.

View the recorded webinar below and take a short survey:

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  Social Media Tips for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products Webinar:
  June 19, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. (CST)

• Our webinar, “Social Media Tips for Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products,” was held on June 19, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. The webinar provided information on how to use social media to sell aquaculture products directly to customers, including a discussion on legal issues to consider. Speakers included Maggie Lawrence from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and Will Wilkins from the Mississippi Law Research Institute. The webinar was hosted by the National Sea Grant Law Center and the National Agricultural Law Center, in collaboration with the University of Illinois Extension; Auburn University School of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences; the Aquaculture and Fisheries Business Institute; Alabama Cooperative Extension System; and Auburn University Marine Extension and Research Center.

View the recorded webinar below and take a short survey:

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  Workshop

• On April 22, 2014, the National Sea Grant Law Center and the National Agricultural Law Center co-hosted a workshop on Direct Marketing Aquaculture Products in Alabama. The event was held in Auburn, Alabama and broadcast live to the Alabama Fish Farming Center in Greensboro, Alabama and the Auburn University Shellfish Laboratory in Dauphin Island, Alabama. Additional partners included the University of Illinois Extension; Auburn University School of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences; the Aquaculture and Fisheries Business Institute; Alabama Cooperative Extension System; and Auburn University Marine Extension and Research Center. Speakers from Mississippi and Alabama came together to discuss direct marketing techniques, branding resources, entity selection, and risk management strategies, including food safety, permitting, and insurance. Below are the presentations from the workshop:

• What is Direct Marketing? [ view video ]
  • • Rusty Rumley, Senior Staff Attorney, National Agricultural Law Center
    • Terra Bowling, Senior Research Counsel, National Sea Grant Law Center
    • Stephanie Showalter Otts, Director, National Sea Grant Law Center
  • Branding/Marketing Resources
    • • Stephanie Showalter Otts, Director, National Sea Grant Law Center
      • Bethany Walton, Alabama MarketMaker Outreach Coordinator, Auburn University, Marine Extension & Research Center/Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium
    • Entity Selection and Formation [ view video ]
      • • Matt Wilson, Alabama Small Business Development Center Network
      • Risk Management: Food Safety and Permitting
        • • Phyllis Fenn, Standardization Officer, Bureau of Environmental Services - Food/Milk/Lodging, Alabama Department of Public Health
          • Scott Bannon, Chief Enforcement Officer, Alabama Marine Resources Division, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
        • Risk Management: Insurance
          • Rusty Rumley, Senior Staff Attorney, National Agricultural Law Center
        • Other Considerations [ view video ]
          • • Thomas Todt, District Director, Small Business Administration, Alabama District
          • Q & A Session with Workshop Speakers
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            Additional Risk Management Resources for Direct Marketing:

• • DNRC document on aquaculture
  • National Agricultural Law Center agritourism planning resources