One Saturday last year , I help out a friend by carry off his farmers market booth along with two of his farm apprentice . I like sour at farmers markets , and even though I knew Saturdays were very busy , I intend it would be fun . Well , it was busy — so busybodied that we ran out of quarters to give change , so I go away the John Wilkes Booth for five minutes to get modification and take a walk . When I came back , the county wellness inspector was waiting for me . This was not what I was disposed to find , and I was nervous , but for no reason .
When you parade at a farmers market as a James Leonard Farmer , a machinate - food vendor or acottage - food vendor , you could await to have a visit from your local health inspector at least once per yr .
“ If there are takings during the review , they may be inspected more often , ” says Logan Hall , of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Office of Communications .
That Good Book — issues — is what I was afraid of when I encountered my first review , specially because I did n’t really jazz the rules , rather was just meet in on what I expected to be a routine daylight . It turns out , every state , county and city has different sodbuster marketplace vendor principle and rule . you may learn what you need to acknowledge about the rules governing you through your land department of agriculture and bureau of food safety . ( The food rubber website for vendors in Pennsylvania , for example , isEatSafePA.com , and Illinois has a overnice food - safe bookletavailable free online . ) If you be after to sell your wares at an established farmers market , your market manager might also have the entropy you need to be right with local , county and state police .
After you determine whose rules you must surveil , take some of the edge off of your first wellness - examiner visit with these seven tips .
1. Understand Your Licensing Requirements
If you are only deal raw green goods , you might not necessitate a permit or to register with your wellness department at all . There are gray areas , however , and these are worth require about . If all of the vegetables you sell are grown on your farm , but you also sell peaches from a neighbor or barbeque sauce from a friend , you may be outside the bounds of sell homegrown garden truck . retail merchant of essence — even meat raised on your farm and swear out by a USDA - inspect facility — could face extra licensing .
If you ’re selling food for thought you prepared in your home kitchen grant to cottage - food for thought rule or in a commercial kitchen , if you ’re selling ready - to - eat food , or if you ’re offering food sampling of any form , you probably postulate a license from the health or husbandry section . In some states , like Missouri , you could even be subject to a frozen - dessert license . If contrive to offer food samples , you might need to attend a solid food - safe form . These are commonly devoid .
“ Some vendors — those with only cutting Department of Agriculture produce or pre - packaged , non - potentially hazardous foods — are exempt from licensing but not from inspection , ” Hall says .
Keep a copy of whatever licenses and permit you are subject to , as the inspector will ask to see them .
2. Understand The Health Rules
Because state agriculture departments have certain rules pertaining to centre processing and orchis sales and it ’s the local health departments that do market inspection , lines of communication can sometimes get cross . It ’s authoritative to be familiar with what ’s have a bun in the oven of you from both department .
3. Know The Difference Between Processed And Raw
You ’d believe the departure between a processed solid food and a in the buff farming good would be square , but some states have confusing difference of opinion . In Illinois , for lesson , herbaceous plant can be sold fresh or dry in a bundle , and these are considered raw production . If the dried herb are fall apart into a jar , they ’re consider processed . If the unfermented herb are packaged in a plastic , clamshell package , they ’re also considered processed . These and other tricky point are what make your body politic ag law worth reading .
4. Keep Your Food Cool
Cold food should be kept cold . Hot food should be kept red-hot . This is pretty common sense , but on a raging 24-hour interval , a particularly cold Clarence Day or an by chance interfering daylight , hold up with the temperatures of your goods could come by the wayside . Coolers containing temperature - sensitive item should have a thermometer in them to show they ’re a proper temperature . You should be able-bodied to demonstrate that the solid food you ’re serving live are held at the correct temperature , too .
5. Know Everything There Is To Know About Hand-Washing
If you have your own helping hand - lavation post , be sure it ’s stocked and in working order of magnitude . If you ’re sharing a station , be able-bodied to demonstrate how to get there from your booth and how to habituate it .
6. Know What You’re Allowed To Sell
proffer for sales agreement an token that is not legal for sale most in all probability wo n’t get you shut down , but it wo n’t make anyone ’s twenty-four hour period better .
“ If [ the health examiner ] finds a food that is not to be get by a circumscribed establishment ( home nutrient processor ) , such as beef lather , they would notify the vendor that the food is not from an approve germ , and therefore , they must remove the solid food from sale , ” Hall says . “ If they are sell products not produced by themselves , then the examiner may ask for invoices to assure the food products are from an approved source . ”
7. Respect Your Health Inspector
Like any officer of the constabulary , the wellness inspector is not out to hassle you , only to do his or her Book of Job . You do n’t need to provide up entropy not asked for , but do be honest in your response to his or her questions .
In the end , know that your booth will be inspected just like everyone else ’s . “ reexamine the information on the website , have current licence / permits / certificate , and ask questions in advance , ” Hall suggests .
On my crash - track in health review , it turn out my sodbuster friend had done just that , and our booth was given the all clear for another year . Yours sure can be , too .
