Oregon bill to exempt farmers’ markets ignores food safety

Posted: February 2nd, 2011 - 11:05pm by Doug Powell

There’s always weird stuff going on with state legislators. Anyone who watches Big Love on HBO would know that polygamist and newly elected state representative Bill is just making a mess of things in the TV version of Utah.

In Oregon, Rep. Matt Wingard, R-Wilsonville, introduced House Bill 2336 to balance promotion of farmers’ markets with protection for food safety.


“I believe we have adequately addressed the issues and you have a bill before you that allows farmers’ markets to continue to grow and thrive. … The principal ingredients must be grown and processed by their producer, it must list ingredients and the name and address of the producer, the producer is limited to $20,000 in annual sales, and it must carry a label that it is homemade and is not prepared in an inspected food establishment.”


Faith-based food safety is in no one’s interest.
 

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Categories: Food Safety Policy
Tags: big love, Bill, Farmer, food safety, market, Oregon

Comments

Anonymous says:

What? Are you suggesting that a farmer's market participant can't care their way to a safe food product? Why, these people have to look their customer's in the eye! They develop a relationship with their customers and know who their kid's are! It's "real" food, not the "processed crap" that a commercial producer might turn out! (can anyone else weave in more faith-based food safety statements to the above paragraph??)

Posted on February 3rd, 2011 - 7:15am

R.Harrington says:

Well I guess it's nice to know that Wyoming is not the only place where legislators are riding the "Tea Party" bandwagon, trying to dismantle every law and regulation on food safety. Our version, (just recently defeated in committee for the FIFTH (5th!) consecutive time...would have jsut opened the floodgates to let home-processors sell anything, including backyard-butchered meats, anywhere, with absolutely no oversight. Wyo legislators also killed a bill to require Meningitis vaccination for school kids---"too expensive at $330,000", killed a requirement to make Seat Belt use a Primary traffic offense, but they're roaring forward to exempt all non-profit food events from any and all controls, and in their best show of concern for Public Health & Safety, they're going to pass a bill to allow ANYONE to carry a concealed weapon WITHOUT a permit !.....Sigh...

Posted on February 3rd, 2011 - 10:12am

Anonymous says:

How about regulating all cookie sales, lemonade stands, and potlucks! Let's have private kitchens open to inspection just in case! Guess what, over-regulating will not stop all food-born illnesses. And by the way, R.Harrinton, requiring meningitis vaccine will not prevent all neisseria meningitis cases either. A significant percentage of cases are caused by a serogroup not included in the vaccine. How about having parents responsible for their children's health and welfare based on information provided by their medical providers? Just a thought.

Posted on February 3rd, 2011 - 1:06pm

CPHI(C) from ON says:

Classic rationalization - it won't stop all food-borne illnesses, so it's not worth doing at all! In other words, it doesn't work perfectly, so it's completely worthless. Good critical thinking!

Posted on February 3rd, 2011 - 7:43pm

Anonymous says:

What does a fictional polygamist have to do with food safety? Are you implying that too many wives in the kitchen fosters more pathogenic microbes? This isn't a Tea Party bill. It has bipartisan support and opposition. If licensing alone could stop food-borne illness, you wouldn't have a job.

Posted on February 11th, 2011 - 7:43pm

Anonymous says:

The proposed law in Oregon is quite specific in nature, unlike the very general accusations made against it. It allows uninspected home kitchens to sell up to $20,000 annual of acidic foods. These are foods which are considered at extremely low risk (because of the very nature of their chemical makeup) to have contamination which will cause illness. So, bravo on this attack on setting realistic limits. Next time, read the language of the bill though, as your assumptions (back yard meat processing?) are baseless and only expose your own prejudices.

Posted on March 10th, 2011 - 4:27pm

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