Sponsored by:
Assemblyman VINCENT MAZZEO
District 2 (Atlantic)
Assemblyman JOHN J. BURZICHELLI
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
Assemblyman GILBERT "WHIP" L. WILSON
District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)
SYNOPSIS
Directs DOH to issue guidance concerning food safety at farmers markets.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning food safety at farmers markets and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Within 90 days after the effective date of this act, the Department of Health, in consultation with the Department of Agriculture, shall prepare a guidance document which provides information to farmers and local health authorities on how rules and regulations concerning sanitation in retail food establishments should be interpreted and applied with regard to farmers markets to ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, the uniform application of those rules and regulations at farmers markets across the State. The guidance document shall explain, in plain language, which products may be offered for sale at a farmers market, and the conditions under which those products may be offered for sale, including cooking, processing, labeling, storage, and other requirements. The Department of Health shall update and republish the guidance document annually, or as necessary, to reflect any changes in the rules and regulations.
b. Upon completion of the guidance document, or an update thereto, the Department of Health and the Department of Agriculture shall publish the document on their respective Internet websites. The departments shall provide a copy of the guidance document to a local health authority upon request.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would direct the Department of Health to issue guidance to farmers and local health authorities concerning food safety at farmers markets.
Farmers markets give farmers the opportunity to offer their products directly to consumers and to interact with the public about their farm products, growing methods, and other aspects of agriculture. The New Jersey Department of Agriculture has invested significant time and effort into helping communities develop farmers markets, which number approximately 150 across the State. The markets, though typically not permanent structures, are governed as “retail food establishments” under the State Sanitary Code, and are thus subject to various requirements concerning cooking, processing, labeling, and storage. These requirements are enforced primarily by local health authorities.
Over the past few years, farmers have reported that interpretations of these requirements by local health authorities have varied greatly across jurisdictions. This has lead to confusion among farmers about which interpretations of the State Sanitary Code apply in any given municipality or county, and created a situation in which a food product offered for sale in one municipality may be prohibited in another. The New Jersey State Agricultural Convention, through its 2015 Resolution No. 9, has asked the State to provide farmers and local health authorities with guidance to clarify the health regulations as applied to farmers markets.
This bill would require the Department of Health, in consultation with the Department of Agriculture, to prepare a guidance document which provides information to farmers and local health authorities on how health regulations should be interpreted and applied with regard to farmers markets to ensure the uniform application of those regulations across the State. The guidance document would explain, in plain language, which products may be offered to sale at farmers markets, and the conditions under which those products may be offered for sale. The Department of Health would update the guidance periodically. Upon completion of the document, the Departments of Health and Agriculture would publish the document on their respective websites and provide copies to local health authorities upon request.