This definition of value-added agriculture is from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Rural Business Development. Value-added products are defined as follows:
• A change in the physical state or form of the product (such as milling wheat into flour or making strawberries into jam).
• The production of a product in a manner that enhances its value, as demonstrated through a business plan (such as organically produced products).
• The physical segregation of an agricultural commodity or product in a manner that results in the enhancement of the value of that commodity or product (such as an identity preserved marketing system).
As a result of the change in physical state or the manner in which the agricultural commodity or product is produced and segregated, the customer base for the commodity or product is expanded and a greater portion of revenue derived from the marketing, processing or physical segregation is made available to the producer of the commodity or product.
