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Entrepreneurs wanting to start or expand a food-related business can learn more about food enterprises at "Northwest Food Business 101." This upbeat, informative half-day workshop offers resources and information about turning ideas into a food-based business.

Northwest Food Business 101 will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 26, from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Food Innovation Center in Portland. The fee for the half-day course is $50 per person, which includes a resource workbook and light refreshments. The Food Innovation Center, a collaborative program of Oregon State University and the Oregon Department of Agriculture, is located at 1207 N.W. Naito Parkway. Free parking is available.

The workshop will also be available to participants in the Prineville area via video teleconference sponsored by the Crook County office of the OSU Extension Service, 498 S.E. Lynn Blvd. in Prineville. For more information, contact the Food Innovation Center or Tim Deboodt, OSU Extension in Crook County, (541) 447-6228.

"NW Food Business 101" offers an overview of the key requirements for a useful food business plan and highlights some of the technical, product development, production, legal, and marketing issues that affect new enterprises in the food industry, according to Aaron Johnson, food business strategy specialist at the Food Innovation Center.

For more information, or to register online, visit the Food Innovation Center website at http://fic.oregonstate.edu/, call (503) 872-6680, or e-mail [email protected]. Because of the popularity of the program and limitations on seating, prospective participants are urged to register in advance.

The center is a unique resource for new food businesses and the only urban-based Agricultural Experiment Station in the United States. It offers analytical laboratory testing, sensory and consumer testing, product development, market research, package engineering, shelf-life studies, export assistance, and marketing and business development guidance.