View Proposal

Missouri

Clay

• Yes

• Individual

March 13, 2023

December 16, 2024

• No

• Farm Business Management (includes marketing)

• Additional Plants (herbs, native plants, ornamentals, trees)

American elderberries

Thomas Ruggieri, fermenter/farmer. Tom has farmed for 20 years and runs the Fair Share Farm fermenting kitchen. The elderberry vinegar project will benefit from this on-farm facility and his operations experience. As a former environmental engineer Tom also has a background in permit applications that can help with procuring applicable Federal licenses for the project. Tom will be responsible for all farm-scale vinegar production operations.

Rebecca Graff is a co-farmer at Fair Share Farm and coordinates our field activities. She has overseen the planting, cultivation, care and propagation of over 200 elderberry bushes on the farm. She will manage the horticultural operation of the project.

Chef Kendall Harris is a Kansas City native and local African-American chef. He works part-time at Fair Share Farm as part of a personal pursuit of the skills and experiences needed to understand and apply fermentation in the kitchen. As former owner of The Happy Apple Café he is a restauranteur, and is pursuing the concept of opening a "fermentation lounge" in KC. His interests also include better understanding how to apply sustainable principles to restaurant applications. He will be evaluating restaurant-kitchen-scale application of vinegar production.

Fair Share Farm staff. Our staff will assist with operations including harvesting and production when additional labor is needed.

Dr. Chung-Ho Lin of the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources will conduct the health analyses of vinegar samples. Dr. Lin has worked specifically with evaluating the chemical properties of American elderberries in the past and has the experience and accumulated knowledge needed to determine any health benefits of elderberry vinegar.

River Hills Harvest is at the forefront of American elderberry growing and value-added product production in Missouri. They have offered to help both with outreach and distribution of any quality finished products generated as a result of this project.

American elderberries are a native fruit in Missouri, and a viable agricultural product. Craft vinegars are a value-added agricultural product in many parts of the world, but not in the US. Tests at our farm have shown that raising elderberries, fermenting them to wine and then to vinegar is viable, and creates an aesthetically pleasing item. Craft vinegar operations can help give elderberry producers another option for adding value to the harvest.

There are no current vinegar production farms in the area. The project will evaluate various production processes to determine the viability of each for small-farm and restaurant-kitchen operations.

The anti-viral properties of elderberry juice is well established. It is not known, however, what beneficial health attributes of the American elderberry will remain (or be enhanced) after a two step fermentation process. We will be teaming with MU analytical lab to determine the answer. 

Additionally, by connecting with the local restaurant community we hope to create a new craft category that will help increase the use of local elderberries, and provide a better knowledge of the benefits of sustainable agriculture.

 

Solution

Obtain necessary licenses and approvals

Production of alcohol is regulated by the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Per TTB:

If you make vinegar from fresh fruit or juice, (this type of vinegar is classified as nonbeverage wine) you must:

• Qualify as a bonded wine cellar by filing an application and bond with TTB using Permits Online. If you make only vinegar, you will not need the Federal Alcohol Administration Act wine producer's permit that is required for producers of beverage wine.
• Obtain approval for your formula indicating how you plan to make nonbeverage wine /vinegar.
• Keep records and file reports in accordance with 27 CFR part 24, subpart O.

As a part of this project we will develop a step-by-step process primer to help others navigate the regulatory aspects of producing vinegar from elderberry fruit. 

Operations evaluation

Operations analysis of various elderberries to wine to vinegar processes will be conducted. American elderberries from our farm (both cultivated and wild varieties) and/or purchased from River Hills Harvest(500 lb +/- is planned.)Prior to initiating operations, we will purchase and complete an on-line vinegar production course developed by the Malle-Schmickl company in Austria. 

Wine making will be completed using food grade barrels and buckets as fermenters. Organic sugar and water will be added as necessary. Finished wine will be stored.

Vinegar processing will be completed using 4 different methods:

1. Passive method. Placing wine in a modified food grade bucket and waiting for vinegar mother to form and convert the wine to vinegar.
2. Orleans process. Created in France in the 17^th century, it is a process where a wood barrel on its side is filled halfway with wine. Openings are cut into the ends of the barrel to allow air to enter and a mother of vinegar to form and convert the wine to vinegar.
3. Vinegar generator. The Malle-Schmickl company produces and sells Vinegar Generators that can process from 1 to 25 gallons of wine into vinegar.  Vinegar can be produced in a tenth of the time that the more passive methods require.
4. Bubbler system. A fourth way to do this is by bubbling air into the wine. A small-scale bubbler system will be constructed to test this method using an aquarium aerator and suitable container. It will be the main restaurant kitchen method of testing and will be carried out on a small scale.

Evaluate culinary benefits of vinegar from each production type.

Tastings of the elderberry vinegar will be performed once an acceptable product has been produced. Each tasting will include the opportunity to complete a survey card. 

Evaluate health chemistry of vinegar from each production type.

We will work with The University of Missouri to evaluate the health benefits and chemistry of the elderberry vinegar once a suitable product is produced.

Evaluate public demand for local craft elderberry vinegar

As a regular vendor at the Brookside Farmers Market we will get a first hand account of public demand once we have product to sell.

Objectives

A. Determine operations viability of at least 4 different wine-vinegar setups:

• Food-grade bucket (passive)
• Orleans barrel (passive)
• Bubbler/aerator system
• Fixed film reactor

 B.  Obtain necessary licenses and approvals from Federal agencies to produce alcohol and store it as vinegar production stock. Outline steps to obtain approvals to help others through the process.

C. Determine culinary benefits of vinegar from each production type.

D. Determine health chemistry of vinegar.

E. Determine public demand for local craft elderberry vinegar

• Economic Sustainability
  • Improved income or profitability
  • Improved market opportunities
  • Increased business/enterprise opportunities
  • Increased employment & labor opportunities
• Social Sustainability
  • Improved agriculture and food system infrastructure
  • Improved quality of life

Benefits	What will be measured	How will it be measured
Improved income or profitability	Evaluation of operational feasibility for 4 methods: measure cost of production and product cost	We will keep a log of the labor time and expenses of the production to  determine potential production cost per unit and profitability.
Improved market opportunities	We will market the product to existing customers, as well as those who do not currently carry our fermented vegetable products. Our current products require refrigeration, so a shelf stable product like vinegar can create new/improved market opportunities.	Number of new and existing accounts that will carry the product
Improved business/enterprise opportunities	Effort to obtain necessary regulatory approval for non-beverage wine production	Labor necessary for regulatory approval and any additional costs (eg, fees, other)
Improved employment and labor opportunities	Labor effort for production, both during elderberry field management and harvesting, as well as vinegar production	Labor and expense logs will be kept for the duration of the project.
Improved quality of life	Culinary appeal	We will survey farmers market customers and others to determine opinion and demand for the product
Improved quality of life	Health components	MU laboratory analysis of chemical components of vinegar
Improved agriculture and food system infrastructure	Project success	The ability to actually obtain permitting and complete the project while producing a quality  product that will be in demand.

In addition to the benefits listed above, the planting of American elderberries on our farm will allow us to utilize farmland that is not suitable for annual crops, increase carbon capture, improve biodiversity, and otherwise benefit the land. These benefits will not be measured as a part of the project but will be inherently beneficial to the farm.

The project will help create demand for American elderberries. Cropping of elderberries can serve to benefit the health and diversity of the land (environmental). 

An agricultural craft product like raw vinegar has the potential to create an operation with the same types of synergy as vineyards and dairies (farmsteading option, social).

We will be creating a product that is respected in many parts of the world. Craft vinegar, as a farmstead product, could become a new category of small-farm ventures. This project will help determine and demonstrate the health and culinary value of the American elderberries (social), and of our Missouri soil (environmental).

Product has the potential for good yield on small to medium acreage. Addresses greater ability to farm small acreages and make a high quality, economically viable product while sequestering carbon and focusing on health.

Similar projects have been completed through SARE, evaluating different ciders from native plants/fruits, and use of local grains for beers and distilled spirits.

Increase acreage of elderberries and other native fruits for agricultural purposes (perennial, organic systems that can co-exist with other systems) can be a useful conversion/remediation for annual cropland that should be taken out of production because of continuing soil loss and degradation. 

The project represents a productive perennial agricultural-craft system, from energy capture to health benefits, biodiversity increases and more.

 

Date	Outreach Activity	Who Participates
March 2023-March 2025	Document project progress on social media with photos, videos and links.	Tom Ruggieri and Chef Kendall Harris will be the main social media posters.
September 2023	Brookside Farmers Market annual farm Open House	As a part of the Brookside Farmers Market we are required to hold an annual open house. As part of each year's event we will be able to show the local community the "how" of our operation. Local growers, market goers and the general public are invited. Farm staff will manage the open house.
January 2024	We will contact the Great Plains Growers Conference planning committee to see if we can speak or present a poster session.	Growers from Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and other Great Plains states. Tom Ruggieri and Chef Kendall Harris will present if asked.
TBD	Podcasts. We were a part of the Thriving Farmers Podcasts' Value-added Summit this year and will contact them about being a part of future podcasts.	Over 25,000 listeners throughout the US and the world.
February 2024	We will contact the Cultivate KC planning committee to see if we can speak or present a poster session at their annual Farmers and Friends gathering.	Local market growers, urban farmers, community agriculturalists and others committed to sustainable agriculture. Tom Ruggieri and Chef Kendall Harris will present if asked.
February 2024	We will contact the Midwest Organic Association conference planning committee to see if we can speak or present a poster session at their annual conference.	Organic and sustainable growers from throughout the Midwest. Tom Ruggieri and Chef Kendall Harris will present if asked.
TBD	Other podcast, organizations and publications	We are regularly asked to speak and will use any opportunity we have to promote the project to other growers and the general public. Where possible Tom Ruggieri and Chef Kendall Harris will present if asked.
TBD	River Hills Harvest	Terry Durham of River Hills Harvest regularly speaks to advocate for American elderberry growing and value-added production. Mr. Durham has offered to assist in outreach, and we will help with these efforts accordingly.

 

 

• No

Category	Description	Amount
Equipment, permanent fencing, perennial seeds and plants, or livestock (50%)	Vinegar generator	$600
Equipment, permanent fencing, perennial seeds and plants, or livestock (50%)	Orleans barrel	$150
Equipment, permanent fencing, perennial seeds and plants, or livestock (50%)	Bubbler system	$75
Materials and supplies	Elderberries	$2,750
Materials and supplies	Sugar	$250
Materials and supplies	Bottles and labels	$1,280
Materials and supplies	On-line vinegar production course	$300
Other direct costs	Elderberry vinegar analyses	$1,500
Personnel	Tom Ruggieri, farmer/fermenter. Research, licensing, operations, management, tastings, report writing, outreach.	$4,000
Personnel	Rebecca Graff, farmer. Elderberry orchard management and harvest.	$1,200
Personnel	Chef Kendall Harris, fermenter/chef. Research, operations, tastings, report writing, outreach.	$1,280
Personnel	Staff, operations assistance, tastings	$1,280
Travel	Mileage and meals for Outreach	$300
Total: $14,965		$14,965

Category	Details/Justification
Equipment, permanent fencing, perennial seeds and plants, or livestock (50%)	Vinegar generator - $600 Flow through vinegar production tabletop equipment
Equipment, permanent fencing, perennial seeds and plants, or livestock (50%)	Orleans barrel - $150 Oak barrel to serve as vinegar fermentation barrel
Equipment, permanent fencing, perennial seeds and plants, or livestock (50%)	Bubbler system - $75 Air diffusion system for vinegar production vessel
Materials and supplies	Elderberries - $2,750 500 lbs at $5.50/lb
Materials and supplies	Sugar - $250 Used in winemaking
Materials and supplies	Bottles and labels - $1,280 Packaging of final product
Materials and supplies	On-line vinegar production course - $300 Course purchased from same company as the vinegar generator
Other direct costs	Elderberry vinegar analyses - $1,500 Costs associated with MU analyses of elderberry vinegar samples
Personnel	Tom Ruggieri, farmer/fermenter. Research, licensing, operations, management, tastings, report writing, outreach. - $4,000 300 hours at $20/hr (request funds for 200 hours)
Personnel	Rebecca Graff, farmer. Elderberry orchard management and harvest. - $1,200 75 hours at $20/hr (request funds for 60 hours)
Personnel	Chef Kendall Harris, fermenter/chef. Research, operations, tastings, report writing, outreach. - $1,280 100 hours at $16/hr (request funds for 80 hours)
Personnel	Staff, operations assistance, tastings - $1,280 120 hours @ $16/hr (request funds for 80 hours)
Travel	Mileage and meals for Outreach - $300 Cover costs associated with projected Outreach travel