Yesterday Western Colorado Congress testified in front of the Senate Ag Committee in support of the Cottage Foods Act. Of the three speakers, Monica Wiitanen was probably the most forceful speaker, as she would be directly impacted by the bill. Monica is a farmer in the North Fork Valley, and also bakes breads in her wood-fired oven. This bill would allow her to sell her breads at farmers markets and roadside stands. This is a good thing! I’ve tasted Monica’s breads and they are worth driving to Paonia to buy!

As a representative from Wextern Colorado Congress of Mesa County, I testified about the importance of economic diversity, and how agri-tourism could help to fill the jobs gap for those who are still unemployed in Mesa County.

The bill passed out of committee on a 5-1 vote, with one Republican Senator voting against the bill. The two points of contention were the requirement for labeling and a mandate for producers to have liability insurance. The insurance requirement was placed in the bill in order to get the support of the Farmer’s Union, who were against the bill during the last session. Two of the GOP Senators expressed concern that producers were being required to purchase an insurance product that may not be affordable or available. The labeling requirements were placed in the bill to satisfy concerns of the health department.

Watching the hearing was amusing, in a black humor sort of way. The two GOP Senators who seemed to have most concern with the law began their attack with an assumption that a whole new layer of regulations were being imposed on small farmers. Nothing could be further from the truth—this bill was designed to exempt small producers from commercial kitchen and inspection requirements. Once they figured that out, they persisted in their anti-regulation rant, probably out of force of habit. In the end the one no vote was because of the requirement to put labels on these feeds.

Speaking strictly as a consumer, I’ve been trained to read labels for ingredients and nutritional values. I’m not sure I would buy a food that didn’t have at least the ingredients listed on a label. I’m sure there are many consumers just like me. Essentially, the Senator with the no vote was saying that it’s okay if sales can’t be made to consumers like me, thus limiting the business potential for these food producers. Dumb.

I’ve previously mentioned that, as a board member of both Western Colorado Congress and Western Colorado Congress of Mesa County, I’ve been working on the issue of promoting local foods, and making it easier for farmers to make a living.

A bill has been introduced in the legislature to do just that. Senator Gail Schwartz, in the Senate, and Representative Don Coram, in the House, have introduced the Cottage Foods Act. A similar bill was introduced last year, but never came up for a vote.

What this bill does is reduce regulations for small family farmers and home based businesses that make jellies, jams, cakes and cookies and sell them locally at places like Farmer’s Markets or food stands. Authors of the bill believe that it will promote agritourism in Colorado communities, thus creating jobs. It should also provide better access to fresh healthy food in places like Grand Junction, where we have many orchards and farms capable of delivering product into our local markets.

Clearly some concerns with the 2011 bill have been addressed in the 2012 bill. It specifically exempts food kitchens from any liability from serving food produced in this lower regulation environment. It also exempts schools from any liability if the food is prepared in the schools’ kitchens.

For foods sold directly to the consumer, the Act limits the reduced regulations to foods that do not require refrigeration, such as nuts, honey, seeds, jams, jellies, spices, teas, dehydrated foods (think sun dried tomatoes!), candies and baked goods. However, these producers must be certified in the safe handling of food. Certification is to come from an entity like the USDA or the Colorado State University Cooperative Extension Service. The pool of producers is further limited to vendors with annual net sales of $2,500 or less.

The Act goes on to describe the label requirements on each food item, which includes contact information for the producer. Finally the Act describes how eggs could be sold under this Act.

Please contact your representatives and ask them to support this bill. While you are at it, how about sending a note to the two  sponsors, and thank them for their work to make it easier to eat foods that are produced locally.

Homework:

Colorado Cottage Foods Act

Senator Gail Schwartz

Representative Don Coram