SB 739

Under current law, a person is not required to obtain a food processing plant license from the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection to sell food products that the person prepares and cans at home in this state if all of the following apply: 1) the food products are a fruit or vegetable pickled at a certain pH level; 2) the person sells the food products at a community or social event or a farmers’ market in this state; 3) the sold food products are labeled with certain information; 4) the person displays a sign at the place of sale stating that the food product is homemade and not subject to state inspection; and 5) the person receives less than $5,000 per year from the sale of the food product.

This bill creates a similar licensing exemption for nonpotentially hazardous foods prepared in a person’s home and sold at retail. The bill defines “nonpotentially hazardous food” as prepared food that does not require time and temperature control for safety to limit pathogenic microorganism growth or toxin formation.

The bill revises the eligibility criteria for the canned pickled foods exemption described in items 2) to 5) above so that both exemptions have similar eligibility criteria. Under the bill, the exemptions for home-prepared canned pickled foods and for home-prepared nonpotentially hazardous foods apply if:

1. The home producer registers with DATCP. DATCP must issue a registration number to the home producer except that, on request, DATCP may register and issue one registration number to multiple individuals residing in a household. The application for registration must include certain information, including a list of all food products sold at retail under the exemption and an ingredient list for each food product.

2. The home producer sells the food products directly to consumers at the physical address of the home producer’s business, by delivery, or at a community or social event or a farmers' market in this state.

3. Each container of food product that is sold is labeled with certain information, including the home producer’s registration number, the date the food product was prepared, the statement “This product was made in a private home,” and a list of ingredients, including the common name of ingredients that are major food allergens.

4. The home producer maintains liability insurance.

5. The home producer has total annual gross sales of applicable food products - home-prepared canned pickled foods and home-prepared nonpotentially hazardous foods - of less than $40,000.

6. If the home producer has annual gross sales of applicable food products of less than $10,000, the home producer displays a sign at the place of sale stating: “These food products are homemade and not subject to state inspection.”

7. If the home producer has annual gross sales of applicable food products of at least $10,000 but less than $40,000 (cottage food producer), at least one person was involved in preparing the food products who holds a certificate of food protection practices issued by DATCP.

Under the bill, DATCP must, by rule, require and establish a process for home inspection of cottage food producers that prepare food products that are nonpotentially hazardous foods. DATCP must issue a certificate to cottage food producers providing notice to the public that the home where the cottage food producer’s activities are conducted has been inspected.