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Module 3 - On Farm Sales
- 1. Food Safety Recommendations for On-farm Sales Farmers Market Federation of NY Cornell Cooperative Extension, Jefferson County Funded by USDA AMS Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 2. Definitions • Farm-based direct marketing operations • Self-serve roadside stands • Roadside stands • Farm markets/stores Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 3. Potential Risks • Product contamination • Water • Farmer/worker hygiene • Displays • Buildings • Consumer contamination • Events and information sharing • Bathrooms Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 4. • Potential outcome of contamination/sickness – Lawsuits – Media coverage results in widespread scare and loss of consumer base/consumer confidence in your farm – Loss of income and potential loss of farm • Minimize risks with a plan Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 5. Food Safety for Direct Marketing Potential Source of Contamination: Products
- 6. Production & Post Harvest Handling RECOMMENDATION: Understand and implement GAPs to reduce food safety risks that exist in production and post- harvest handling of fruits and vegetables. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 7. Washing Produce RECOMMENDATION: All water used in post-harvest handling should be potable. RECOMMENDATION: All water used in a communal or dunk tank must contain a disinfectant appropriate for the commodity with levels monitored for effectiveness. Food Safety for Direct Marketing RECOMMENDATION: Signs should be posted with a message to consumers to thoroughly rinse all produce in cool, running water before consumption.
- 8. Live animals for sale RECOMMENDATION: All live animals for sale or on display should be maintained segregated and downwind from all other foods being sold. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 10. Food Safety for Direct Marketing RECOMMENDATION: All water being used for food preparation, handwashing and drinking, that is not from a municipal source should have microbiological testing conducted prior to each season opening and as often as required by county regulatory agencies
- 12. Food Safety for Direct Marketing RECOMMENDATION: All market sellers should have clean body, hair and clothes and be free from any signs of illness or open sores. RECOMMENDATION: All vendors must wash hands before beginning work and any time they become soiled, i.e. after using restroom facilities, handling live animals, eating and drinking. Note that anti-bacterial gels are not a substitute for hand washing. RECCOMMENDATION: Smoking should not be allowed while selling and/or handling food. NYS Health Laws prohibit smoking where food is being handled, whether it is preparation or the sale of food.
- 13. Potential Source of Contamination: PRODUCT DISPLAYS
- 14. RECOMMENDATION: All foods should be kept off the ground or floor during storage and display. RECOMENDATION: All displays of food should have overhead protection, such as a permanent roof or a canopy. RECOMMENDATION: Foods on display should be segregated from potentially hazardous foods to ensure there is no cross contamination; particularly raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 15. Display Materials RECOMMENDATION: Storage and display containers should be free from food and plant residue and other debris. They should be cleaned and sanitized (if possible) before each use. RECOMMENDATION: Display surfaces should be clean and sanitized before each use. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 16. Packaging RECOMMENDATION: Bags for foods sold to consumers should be new and free from chemicals that could contaminate food products. RECOMMENDATION: Using only new egg cartons is the safest action. If reusing cartons, all prior markings, including producer identification, grade and size statements should be removed from used egg cartons. The cartons should be clean and free of any residue, and re-labeled with the farmer’s identification, according to NYS Labeling Laws. RECOMMENDATION: Shell eggs must be held at 45° or below. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 17. Temperature RECOMMENDATION: While on display all hot foods MUST remain hot, 140°F or above, cold foods MUST remain cold, 41°F or below, with shell eggs held at 45°F or below, and frozen foods MUST remain frozen, 0°F or below. RECOMMENDATION: All potentially hazardous and prepared/processed foods must be prepackaged. Foods prepared on site under New York State Health Department Temporary Food Service Permit must be displayed under a protective cover, to prevent contamination. RECOMMENDATION: All prepackaged foods must be labeled in accordance with New York State Labeling laws. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 18. Animals on the Farm RECOMMENDATION: All live animals for display should be maintained segregated and downwind from food displays. RECOMMENDATION: Any person working with the animals should not handle foods. RECOMMENDATION: Consumers should be prohibited from eating in the animal display area. RECOMMENDATION: A first aid kit, hand wash station, and signs should be used to remind visitors to wash their hands after visiting the exhibit Food Safety for Direct Marketing RECOMMENDATION: All animals should be excluded from anywhere food is being grown, harvested, prepared for sale, or being sold.
- 19. Potential Source of Contamination: Building Conditions
- 20. RECOMMENDATION: Foods should be stored off the floor and not in direct contact with the cooler walls. RECOMMENDATION: Condensation within a cooler should be prevented from dripping on food products or food containers. RECOMMENDATION: Lighting fixtures should be covered to prevent contamination of food products should the lights blow out. Food Safety for Direct Marketing RECOMMENDATION: Cooler walls, ceiling and floor should be easily cleanable and periodically sanitized to eliminate the build-up of dirt, debris and mold.
- 22. Food Safety for Direct Marketing RECOMMENDATION: Signs should be posted for consumers indicating, “Food Safety is a priority at our farm. Please wash your hands after using the restroom, touching animals, eating or any time they are dirty.”
- 23. Additional Considerations for On-farm Sales:
- 24. Events & Information Sharing RECOMMENDATION: Food demonstrations must follow the Food Demonstration Guidelines for Direct Marketing Venues as outlined in the attached reference. RECOMMENDATION: Food sampling must follow the Food Sampling Guidelines for Direct Marketing Venues as outlined in the attached reference. RECOMMENDATION: All recipes and information shared should be consistent with federal and state regulations. In addition, cite sources for recipes and information shared to mitigate personal liability. RECOMMENDATION: information on food preservation should be avoided, instead directing consumers to Cooperative Extension Educators for accurate and up-to-date information. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 25. Bathroom Facilities • Port-a-johns positioned close enough to be convenient, but far enough to prevent contamination from a spill • Service records to show frequency of cleaning • Spill containment plan • Hand-washing station • Signage
- 26. Traceability RECOMMENDATION: All farms should display farm signage and label all bags and containers of food they sell with their farm name and contact information. RECOMMENDATION: All products being sold that are not produced on the farm, should be marked with the farm of origin.
- 27. Project Committee Project Leaders: •Diane Eggert, Farmers Market Federation of NY •Amanda Root, CCE Jefferson County •Katherine Lang, CCE St. Lawrence County •Rosalind Cook, CCE Jefferson County Committee: •Betsy Bihn, National GAPs Administrator •John Lukor, NYSDAM, Food Safety Division •Dave Wyman, Wyman & Associates Insurance •Lindsay Ott, Lindsay Ott Communications •Laura Biasillo, CCE Broome County •Isabel Prescott, Riverview Orchards •Phil Harnden, Garden Share •JoEllen Saumier, Kirbside Gardens •Solveig Hanson, Harris Seeds •Michelle Sherman, University of Minnesota •Bob Buccieri, Seneca Falls Farmers Market •Robert Hadad, Cornell Ag Team Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 28. QUESTIONS? Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 29. What’s wrong in this story? Farmer Jones has a dairy farm, milking 150 cows. He also raises a few vegetables to sell at a table out in front of the farm, along the street. Each summer, he sets up a table with an umbrella to keep the sun off the produce. A signboard is used to mark the prices of whatever is in season. The plastic bags his wife brings home from the grocery store are gathered and put out for customers to bag their own purchases. He believes in the honor system and places a money box on the table for customers to pay for their produce. Along with cows, Farmers Jones has a few chickens that are free to wander throughout the farm. Sometimes he finds them in his vegetable fields. Since they eat the weed seeds and insects, he lets them be. Other times, the chickens are out front as greeters for the customers that stop by. Each day, eggs are gathered and placed in cartons that neighbors drop off for him. He adds the eggs to the table and offers them to customers at an affordable price. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
- 30. What’s wrong in this story? Part of Dave’s marketing program is a farm store, where he sells his produce, along with produce from other local farmers. He also resells meats, cheese and eggs from other local farmers to round out his offerings to customers. Meats are kept in a display freezer out front, which maintains an even 0 degree temperature. Another display cooler out front for eggs and cheese is also kept at 45 degrees. Produce is displayed in plastic bins with a bed of ice to keep them fresh and cool. Dave finds that even though the ice melts during the day, it maintains a cold water bath that still keeps the produce cool. The ice is made in the back room with an automatic ice machine that draws water from the farm well. Dave’s Farm believes in marketing his farm name. He has his name on every product in the store, on his bags and even printed on the tee shirts his employees wear. Speaking of employees, Dave hires a few of the neighborhood teens to staff his farm store. While he has a strict policy of no smoking, some of the teens can still be found smoking while they are restocking the shelves or manning the cash register. Food Safety for Direct Marketing
Editor's Notes
- Third in a series of presentations on Food Safety Recommendations for Farm Direct Marketing Activity: Farmers Markets Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) On-farm Sales Agritourism Direct Delivery Crisis Communication Optional Activity: Paper Pass: On the top of a sheet of paper, pose the following question: “What do you see as potential sources of contamination with on-farm sales ventures?” Then send the sheet around the room asking each person to list at least one potential source of contamination. Review at the end of the session. Handout: On-Farm Sales Recommendations
- Definitions of farm activities covered by this set of recommendations: Farm-based direct marketing operations: No formal retail space Products are not out for public viewing, but are available for consumer purchase i.e. in a cooler or freezer) Farm owner assisted sales or self serve Mostly word of mouth advertising Self-serve roadside stand: Unstaffed display of homegrown farm products Uses honor system for payment May be supplemental product from another local farm Structure can be covered or not Roadside stand: Includes staffing, assisting customers with sales Most product from the home farm, but can be supplemented by other local farms Set up can be sophisticated or basic, covered or not Farm Market/Stores Staffed, with regular hours Indoor facility Product varies more than other types of on-farm sales ventures May include additional enterprises, such as a bakery, ready-to-eat foods, on-site food service Food service carries additional licensing requirements Please note that Carrying potentially hazardous foods , unless the product’s are the farm’s own products, requires a 208AFood Store License from NYSDAM Processing of foods, such as cutting fruits and vegetables, baking, etc, requires a 20C license
- Foodborne illness outbreaks can be devastating to all concerned: Consumer health is compromised Consumer confidence in the farm can be damaged resulting in lost customer base and lost sales revenue Lawsuits stemming from an outbreak may cause financial ruin for the farm involved. Risks can be minimized with a plan: Follow recommendations for keeping your on-farm retail operations safe for your customers. Maintain adequate and appropriate records to assist in tracing the source of any foodborne illnesses. Create a crisis management plan to follow in the event of a foodborne illness outbreak that involves your farm.
- While this presentation will deal more with how products are handled at the point of sale, it is important that all produce is grown, harvested and handled using adherence to GAPs food safety guidelines. Note that neither size of producer nor method of production used alter the inherent safety of food products. Resource: www.gaps.cornell.edu Small Farms Task Force: A Resource Guide to Direct Marketing Livestock and Poultry
- Adding disinfectants to wash water can also improve the shelf life of produce by helping to control plant pathogens and spoilage organisms. Reinforce the idea that food safety is a shared responsibility. While farmers work to ensure their food is free of contamination and pathogens, consumers must do their part and ensure that the foods they purchase remain pathogen free through consumption.
- Animals can contaminate foods, whether directly from dander, fecal matter, etc, or through human contact with animals then food. Preventing the transfer of contaminants and pathogens from animals to food is important.
- Water can carry pathogens, such as E Coli 0157:H7 and can result in catastrophic health problems. Water that is contaminated will pass that contamination on to anything that contacts it, whether it is through drinking, hand-washing, rinsing produce, etc. Test for coliform bacteria on a quarterly basis during months of operation and perform and annual nitrate test. Maintain test results to show proof of testing.
- Farmer hygiene is important to prevent contamination of foods. But it is also an important element in direct marketing. The visual image presented by the farmer helps to form a customers opinion of the food and its appeal.
- Pathogens and contaminants may be transferred to product that is displayed on the ground, including insects, dirt, etc. It is also a good marketing practice to display products within easy reach of consumers: between knees and shoulders. Segregating potentially hazardous foods helps to eliminate cross contamination, either by the seller or the consumer. Resource: NYSDAM Meat Regulations: www.agmkt.state.ny.us/FS/industry/04circs/Art5Bsaleof meatCIR914.pdf and www.agmkt.state.ny.us/FS/industry/04circs/meatforsaleatretailCIR934.pdf
- Clean and sanitized display materials and surfaces reduce the risk of contamination. It is also an important marketing tool. Soiled surfaces and display containers with residue from past market days is an indication to consumers that the food is also unclean.
- Plastic t-bags are of a food grade quality and can be used for food purchases. However, used bags may have contaminants or pathogens from product previously carried in them. To prevent cross-contamination, new bags should always be used. The same is true for egg cartons. Used egg cartons may house pathogens from egg residue that remains from past uses. Therefore, new cartons are preferred. If used cartons are being used, it is NYS Law, that the old labels on the carton be obliterated and the new label information be added to the carton. Shell eggs must be kept at 45 degrees or below at all times, when on display and in storage. Resource: NYS Labeling Laws, www.agmkt.state.ny.us/FS/pdfs/FS1514.pdf NYSDAM Egg Regulations: www.agmkt.state.my.us/FS/industry/shelleggs.html
- Temperature requirements vary between the NYS Health Department and the NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets. The range here encompasses both state agency regulations. Compliance with these temperature ranges will satisfy both sets of temperature regulations. Keep a thermometer on hand and take temperature readings periodically, recording time and temperature in temperature logs. Foods held outside of required temperature longer than 2 hours must be discarded. No foods can be processed (ie cut, cooked or otherwise altered from their raw state) without a proper Dept of Health permit. Samples should be done in an approved kitchen and then pre-packaged. Handout: Temperature Log Resource: NYS Labeling Laws, www.agmkt.state.ny.us/FS/pdfs/FS1514.pdf
- Animals are a constant on farms, from pets, to animals raise for food, as well as wild animals. But animals carry pathogens and should be eliminated from areas where food is grown or sold to prevent contamination. Farm animal displays can be a good way to help educate consumers about the role animals play in agriculture. They are also an attraction for kids of all ages, making the farm visit a fun shopping experience. However, caution is necessary to prevent contamination of the foods being sold.
- The key is to prevent cross contamination. Cooler walls, food storage, should all be done in a manner that reduces the risk of cross contamination,, eliminates pests and rodents, and maintains appropriate temperatures for foods. Coolers should have a temperature gauge to allow you to monitor temperatures. Also, a plastic curtain on the cooler door will help to maintain temperatures when going in and out of the cooler.
- Consumers can contaminate the foods on your table, as well. Transfer of pathogens from animals touched Unclean hands; i.e. not washing after using the bathroom Sneezes Be vigilant when consumers are at your table and remove any products that may have been contaminated
- Handouts: Food Demonstration Guidelines for Direct Marketing Venues Food Sampling Guidelines for Direct Marketing Venues Food Safety Guidelines for Consumers on the Farm
- Having bathroom facilities on site is a marketing tool. Customers appreciate the availability of facilities, especially those with young children. Without having bathrooms available, those customers would need to leave the farm and the result is unhappy customers and lost sales for the farmers. Monitor bathrooms for cleanliness and restocking needs. Maintain service records to show when and who did each cleaning and restocking. Every bathroom should have appropriate handwashing, complete with hot and cold running water, disposable hand towels or air dryers, soap and signage. The signage should say: “Employees/Vendors must wash hands before returning to work.”
- This is also a good marketing tool – let your customers know who you are – mark your booth, as well as provide your farm name on bags, business cards, signage, etc. It helps customers get to know you and remember the quality of the products you sold them. If you are reselling products from another source, they should be labeled with the farm of origin. This allows customers to know where ALL of their food comes. Handout: Traceability Procedures Harvest Log
- Optional Activity: What’s wrong with this story. Read the stories on the following slides and discuss the potential risks and solutions. Optional Activity: Have participants consider their own on-farm sales venture and identify on paper, the things they will need to do differently to comply with food safety guidelines. These can either be discussed as a group, or just as a take-away to begin a food safety plan for each farm.
- Shopping bags should always be new. Reusable bags can contaminate foods placed in them. Animals should always be excluded from anywhere food is grown or sold. New cartons should be used for eggs to prevent contaminations from residues remaining on the carton. Eggs should be kept at 45 degrees at all times. Placing them on a table without refrigeration of any kind does not comply with temperature requirements.
- The display cooler for eggs and cheese is not kept at the proper temperature. While 45 degrees is okay for eggs, cheese requires a 40 degree temperature. Melted ice water must be drained off. No food should be left sitting in melted ice water. Does the farm perform quarterly coliform testing and an annual nitrate test? Dave’s Farm is labeled as the producer of all products in the farm. This does not allow traceability of products. Not to mention, it is dishonest. There should be no smoking when handling food, not while restocking, nor while selling. NYS also has a law against smoking indoors.