The Homegrown Vendor Blog

Create SOPs for your one-person food business. Checklist-format procedures for production day, packaging, delivery, and market prep.

How to extend shelf life without preservatives: cool, seal and freeze, plus counter, fridge and freezer times for 15 homemade foods, sourced from USDA and university extensions.

Reduce food waste in your food business. Bake to order, handle unsold market inventory, prevent spoilage, and turn waste into revenue.

Deal with ingredient price spikes as a food vendor. Margin protection, smart substitutions, bulk buying, and when to raise your prices.

Create a master ingredient purchase list for your food business. Recipe-based quantities, scaling tables, bulk buying sources, and inventory tracking.

Set order cutoff times that work for you and your customers. Product-based lead times, best time of day, enforcement, and communication strategies.

Handle same-day food orders without chaos. Limited menu, cutoff times, daily order caps, and systems to keep production smooth.

Create a clear refund policy for your food business. When to refund, when to say no, replacement vs refund, and where to display your policy.

What to say when customers ask you to lower your price. Scripts, mindset shifts, and how to redirect the conversation to value.