charging for kitchen rental

[auntieoftwo]

is anyone familiar with catering kitchen rentals? I am just starting out and not able to pay the going rates for a full kitchen. i have heard of places that rent by percentage of sales, hourly, weekly, etc
Does anyone have any good advice on how not to lose my shirt in rental cost? I am in central CT
thanks, auntie of two

[TapTapper]

I'd say your best bet is to find an "incubator kitchen". I use a local shared-use commercial kitchen to bottle our BBQ sauce. It is fully licensed, and is designed to help anyone wanting to start out in the food biz. We are members of the NY Small-Scall Food Processor's Association (nyssfpa.dom). The SSFPA has great newsletters online, and members can pay $50 for nutritional analysis for labeling purposes.

There is probably some such thing in CT; try your state ag market or extension service.

You can also travel to Poughkeepsie, NY to Hudson Valley FoodWorks (shared-use kitchen that we use). Rates are $25-35 per hour, depending on the room used. There are catering kitchens, a full bottling line with steam kettles, pie presses, and tons of special equipment.

Also try the Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship (NECFE), which is located at Cornell U. The center in Cornell is very helpful; they even provide cut-rate scheduled processes for bottled products.


Good Luck!

--Pat