Food licensing exemptions and business opportunities explained
South Wasco Alliance invited Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) Food Safety Inspector Naaman Smith to field community questions about licensing and regulations. Following the first South Wasco Farmers Market season, market vendors and other residents interested in pursuing additional opportunities in food production and sales met at the Tygh School Community Center on November 17th to hear answers to their questions. Many were interested to learn more about Oregon’s Home Baking Bill which allows small businesses to sell baked goods made in their homes without a domestic kitchen license. Farmers were also interested in regulations around processing of products they grow and meat sales regulations.
These legislative bills passed in the effort to increase availability to consumers and provide opportunity to small producers by allowing small production product exemptions are not always clear. This is because food safety regulations are specific to the type of food and the handling of it, due to the variety of potentially hazardous infectious or toxic microorganisms. To be certain that your product and processes are included in these exemptions or to find out what kind of licensing you may need, contact your local food safety inspector. As of this publication, food safety inspector Naaman Smith oversees licensing and inspection of most of the south Wasco County area.
Find his contact information on the ODA staff directory.
One such bill is the Oregon Home Baking Bill allows a license exemption for the production and sales of non-potentially hazardous baked goods and confectionary items that are sold direct to consumers. To qualify for this exemption individuals or small businesses must not exceed $20,000 in annual sales, must follow Oregon food establishment sanitation guidelines and label products appropriately. Additionally, each person involved in the preparation of the baked goods must obtain a food handlers permit. Many questions have been asked about what products fall under the term “non-potentially hazardous”, and it is specific to the ingredients used in the product. However, a good rule of thumb is that any item that would normally be refrigerated is considered potentially hazardous and would not be allowed under the Home Baking Bill exemption.
Oregon’s Farm Direct Marketing law is similar to the Home Baking Bill in that it allows farmers to sell low-risk value-add products, in which they have grown all the main ingredients, direct to consumer without the need for ODA certification provided they do not exceed $20,000 in annual sales. Again, the specific products are varied, and it is best to review the specific product exemptions and reach out to the ODA for clarity if needed. A few of the low-risk value-add products include fruit-based syrups and jams, acidified fruits and vegetables such as pickles. Other routine harvesting processes such as drying and hulling of specific crops also fall under the Farm Direct Marketing exemption. You can review the Farm Direct Marketing law HERE. Also refer to the Oregon State Extension Service publication Oregon’s Farm Direct Marketing Law: Producer-processed Value-added Products. A guide for farmers and market managers by Sara Runkel, Lauren Gwin, and Kelly Streit.
Inspector Smith was excited to inform us about new opportunities for Oregon livestock producers this year. Previously, Oregon livestock producers of cattle, swine, sheep, goats and other exotic species were limited to USDA certified slaughter and processing facilities. With long wait times to get into USDA certified meat processing plants, the expense and the stress of hauling livestock long distances has resigned many producers to solely selling live animals. The two most common choices are to sell livestock at auction or sell direct to consumers. Without the ability to get their livestock processed in a certified facility in a timely manner ranchers only direct means of selling to consumers is to sell “on the hoof”. You may have heard this term. It refers to the process in which one or more consumers buy an animal, and they take ownership of that animal before it gets processed. This way buyers who are purchasing for their own household use can use custom-exempt facilities. Selling livestock has its drawbacks with a lower return on investment and less demand than processed ready to purchase cut and wrapped meats. A recent agreement with the USDA gives ODA the authority to inspect and certify meat products produced for shipment within the state. This is exciting news to south Wasco County producers whose closest USDA facilities are more than an hour away by truck. This new agreement provides smaller facilities the opportunity to process meats under inspection of the ODA allowing the rancher to obtain ODA certified processed meats for sale within the state and is expected to increase rural Oregon economies.
While the ODA is responsible for regulating the production, processing, and distribution of food products it is important to note that they do not license food service establishments. Restaurants, food carts/trucks and temporary food service events are regulated by local county health departments. To ensure that you have the proper licenses for your business contact your local ODA food safety inspector and/or health department. If you’re interested in becoming part of the food ecosystem in south Wasco County or want to know what resources are available for small producers, we’d love to hear from you. Send us an email at info@southwascoalliance.org and let us know what you’d like to know more about.
Even if you’re not interested in selling food products the ODA has a helpful consumer information page on their website where you can learn more about food safety at home including food storage, preservation and avoiding cross contamination. You can take small steps to ensure food safety at home like washing reusable shopping bags between uses, keeping raw foods separated on lower shelves in the refrigerator, checking to ensure your refrigeration temperature stays below 40˚F.
Also please remember when in doubt throw it out or compost it. This is because freezing only temporarily inactivates microbes, bacteria, yeast and molds, also while cooking foods to proper temperatures will kill bacteria it will NOT eliminate poisons or toxins that have already been produced by the bacteria.
Keep yourself, friends, and family free from food borne illnesses and extend the shelf life of food by learning more.
