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Did you know such a thing as food insurance existed? It is otherwise known as food product liability insurance. This type of coverage would provide some protection in the event that food that a consumer purchased did injury to them. Most retail outlets unofficially require that a food manufacturer provide a minimum level of food product liability insurance coverage before they will carry that item. That minimum is normally around $1 million. This is coverage that you won't likely find agents for in the yellow pages.

Unfortunately, there is not standard rate for policy or premium estimates for this type of insurance. Food product liability providers seem reluctant to provide solid estimates. You will most likely have to fill out forms and submit information on such things as production, distribution and marketing plans as well as annual sales and the like. Some other information they might require in order to give you a quote is:

• Level of gross sales or annual payroll

• Prior claims/history

• Level of coverage

• Specialty or standard market

• Type of product

• Type of market

• Recall plan

• Batch system for production

This information and much more is available in an article published in 1998 by Rob Holland of the University of Tennessee for the Agricultural Development Center. The information is still relevant for today but it might be helpful to know that food product insurance might be more easily found under product liability insurance in general. Your insurance agent can help you determine which route would be best in covering your interests in regard to food preparation, marketing and distribution. Some things to consider are topics such as product liability laws worldwide, product liability exposure identification, risk assessment and management, product safety policy and program development and more.

If you are considering starting your own food production business with a recipe handed down in your family for generations there are a lot of things to consider. Check out this article from the Virginia Cooperative Extension, which includes many other things to consider besides food product liability insurance.

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