By Chuck Willoughby, FAPC Business and Marketing Relations Manager

(Stillwater, Okla. - March 11, 2016) FAPC takes prides in meeting the needs of the food and agricultural industry. Financial support over the years has helped the center continue to meet its mission of supporting value-added food processing across the state.

After opening in 1997, FAPC soon benefitted from equipment donations and a drive to establish the Charles B. Browning Chair in Food Science.

In 2003, FAPC Director Roy Escoubas worked with the OSU Foundation to establish the FAPC Product Innovation Fund, which garners support in the areas of product and process development, industry employee training, food safety and security, industry waste and biofuels, and general support for FAPC.

Since that time, funds supporting FAPC’s Global Food Safety System program and endowments in food product development have been established.

In April 2014, FAPC’s Industry Advisory Committee led the charge to establish a $3.4 million endowment to fund a food safety option to Oklahoma State University’s food science degree program. The Oklahoma State Board of Regents approved the new degree option at its April 2015 meeting.

Financial support from these donors has enhanced FAPC’s capabilities of meeting its mission beyond what state allocations can provide. Further, it highlights FAPC as a national leader in food safety.

FAPC has experienced great success in its first 18 years by assisting more than 1,000 Oklahoma clients through more than 3,000 technical and business projects.

Respondents to a recent 5-year impact study directly attributed increases in annual payroll of $2.1 million and annual sales of $5.7 million to the assistance received from FAPC.

Even during an economic recession and the highest statewide unemployment rates in decades, the total (direct, indirect and induced) annual statewide impacts of FAPC assistance were 367.8 jobs, $8.9 million in payroll and $18.7 million in total economic activity.

These results affirm FAPC is successfully meeting its mission of “Adding Value to Oklahoma.” Looking forward, the FAPC Foundation Focus Team, faculty and staff are dedicated and driven to continue providing invaluable service to Oklahoma and its value-added agricultural industry.

FAPC has received nearly $2.9 million in contributions from the Oklahoma value-added industry and from private individuals.

FAPC’s advisory board contributed more than $1 million to support the new food safety option. The second largest area of support consisted of equipment donations and other gifts-in-kind, valuing more than $850,000. Donations to the Product Innovation Fund have reached nearly $500,000, while program-support funding for student research stipends has reached nearly $100,000. Support of FAPC’s Global Food Safety System program has reached $75,500 in just three years.

To learn more about the Product Innovation Fund and how you can help plant seeds of success, visit fapc.biz/product-innovation-fund.

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Oklahoma State University is a modern land-grant university that prepares students for success. OSU has more than 36,000 students across its five-campus system and more than 25,000 on its combined Stillwater and Tulsa campuses, with students from all 50 states and around 120 nations. Established in 1890, Oklahoma State has graduated more than 260,000 students who have been serving Oklahoma and the world for 125 years.