2009 Workshop

VAFEP Mission

The purpose of the Virginia Agriculture & Food Entrepreneurship Program (VAFEP) is to support new and existing innovative value-added food processing and food production enterprises and to strengthen agriculture and food economic development opportunities in the Virginia Piedmont region through a series of educational workshops.

The VAFEP presents an excellent strategy for local agriculture and food entrepreneurs to immediately and positively impact the piedmont area economy and regional foodshed by gaining valuable information about important food safety regulations, business planning tools and local food marketing techniques.

Learning from experts such as local agriculture and food entrepreneurs, professionals at the Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Thomas Jefferson Health District, Virginia Tech, Central Virginia Small Business Development Center and Piedmont Environmental Council will allow new and existing agricultural and food-based business developers to strengthen there knowledge and understanding of these important topics, which will ultimately help generate economic impacts for there businesses and for the local economy.

The direct producer-to-consumer exchange of locally produced food with those who consume it, helps to create local economic development and sustainable community food systems, integrating all members of a community, promoting sustainable agriculture, strengthening our family farms, enhancing socio-economic wellbeing and incubating new generations of farmers. This relationship also connects rural residents with urban dwellers, and unites agricultural lands with non-farming land, in the process, strengthening our communities.

Enhancing our communities through the development of local and regional food systems gives us the ability to strengthen the web that interconnects all aspects and all members of society, thereby creating a more unified community. As a result, we construct an environment that is more economically diverse, environmentally sustainable and socially interconnected.

Joell Eifert

Joell Eifert
Director, Food Processor Technical Assistance Program
Department of Food Science and Technology
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA 24061
Phone: (540) 231-8697
Fax: (540) 231-9293
Email: joell.eifert@vt.edu

Joell Eifert Joell is currently the Director of the Food Processing Technical Assistance Program in the Department of Food Science and Technology at Virginia Tech. The Food Processor Technical Assistance Program (FPTA) was developed in cooperation with The Department of Food Science and Technology and Virginia Cooperative Extension to provide technical expertise and laboratory testing to Virginia food entrepreneurs. Joell also functions as a liaison between extension agents, food companies and Virginia Tech faculty in the realm of food product safety and development. Technical advice provided involves food safety issues, food product formulation, shelf-life, food packaging and labeling, record keeping and regulatory compliance. She also serves as a manager for several laboratories within the department.

Joell previously worked six years at Nestlé as a Microbiology Laboratory Supervisor, Quality Assurance Laboratory Supervisor, Quality Assurance Coordinator and Pilot Plant Development Technologist. Most of her positions held within Nestle involved developing Quality Assurance programs, policies and procedures, interacting with regulatory officials and developing formulas and processes for safe food products.

Joell is married to Dr. Joseph Eifert, a professor at the department of Food Science and Technology. She has two children – an eleven-year old son, Ben and an eight-year old daughter, Madelena.

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