I don't get GFM so did not read about this and I agree this is a bad law but it sounds like a state law, not a federal law (This has not happened in Ohio, for example) and thus has nothing to do with the senate (or complimentary US house bill) bill 503 and everything to do with PA's dept of Ag which has a nice track record of putting down draconian laws that badly affect small farmers selling direct to their customers.

That's apparently only in Pennsylvania ... a local thing, not the US Law.

Actually, not even Pennsylvania state, it's the Montgomery County Health Department (MCHD) rules.

http://meatblogger.org/2011/03/21/new-rules-for-pennsylvania-famers-market-vendors/

http://www.farmplusfinancial.com/blog/general-farm-loans/pennsylvania-to-update-farmers%E2%80%99-market-regulations/

http://uppermerionfarmersmarket.org/

Several other states are following suit.I was wanting farmers to contact their local reps. to protect themself. The state of Oklahoma is working on their own version.

Farmers should always keep abreast of what the state health and agriculture depts are up to. And while some states are cracking down on local foods, others like Michigan and Ohio and loosening up and have cottage industry laws that allow a lot of things to be made and sold at farmers markets with little to no regulation.

but this has zero to do with Federal regulations over food (and you title implies strongly that this has everything to do with Federal regulations)

I had told other in another post that the states would follow suit. Sorry to imply it was federal.

In Indiana, they passed a law exempting food vendors from needing a certified kitchen (as long as they marked items correctly), but the farmers market that I was in, demanded a certified kitchen along with a visit from Board of Health while you were making the item.

There are getting more regulations than there is common sense.

Marla

Talk about strange rules:

I can raise a variety of hot peppers and either sell them ripe or dehydrate them and sell them that way. Ditto for fruit.

But with peppers, I can grind them up (and I can cut up fruit) then mix them together, put the spice in a baggies or bottle and sell the blend. But not fruit, unless I have a certified kitchen.

But what I can do is put together a container that has X amount of dehydrated apples, bananas, cherries, apricots, peaches, blackberries, raspberries, etc., as long as they are each in their own bag/bottle and sell it. Go figure!

Maybe next year!

Mike