Food - Farm to Fork
FOOD SAFETY PARTNERSHIP
MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
JUNE 08TH, 2010
Staffing - MDA
Dairy Inspection Section: farms, dairy plants
Food Inspection Section: retail-wholesale,
manufacturers of food
Meat Inspection Section: Custom exempt meat
processors, MN Equal To plants
Staffing – State and local Health Agencies
 MN Dept of Health
 Local Health Agencies
Delegated by MDH
Delegated by MDA
Objectives
 Discuss licensing requirements and exemptions
 Types of licenses available
 Define an approved facility
 Requirements regarding produce, meat and poultry,
and eggs.
 What is considered processing?
 MDA contacts
Who does not need a license?
28A.15,subd.2:
 Persons selling the products of the farm or
garden occupied and cultivated by them.
* A farmer is an approved source!
Who does not need a license?
 Farmers selling their own shell eggs; registration and
other requirements must also be met.
 Farmers selling their meat & poultry that was
processed under continuous inspection
 Farmers selling fresh raw produce that he or she
grew on their own farm.
Who does not need a license?

MN Statute 28A. 15 Exclusions Subd. 9. Community
event or farmers' market. An individual who prepares
and sells food that is not potentially hazardous food, as
defined in rules adopted under section 31.11, at a
community event or farmers' market with gross receipts of
$5,000 or less in a calendar year from the prepared food
items. If the food is not prepared in a kitchen that is
licensed or inspected, the seller must post a visible sign or
placard stating that: "These products are homemade and
not subject to state inspection." Prepared foods sold under
this subdivision must be labeled to accurately reflect the
name and address of the person preparing and selling the
foods.
Who does not need a license?

MN Statute 28A. 15 Exclusions Subd. 10. Certain homeprocessed and home-canned foods. (a) A person who
receives less than $5,000 in gross receipts in a calendar
year from the sale of home-processed and home-canned
food products and meets the requirements in clauses (1) to
(5):
(1) the products are pickles, vegetables, or fruits having an
equilibrium pH value of 4.6
or lower;
(2) the products are home-processed and home-canned in
Minnesota;
(3) the products are sold or offered for sale at a community
or social event or a farmers‘ market in Minnesota; etc…
No license? Still must follow the rules!
 If a farmer is exempted from licensing, they are still
required to comply with good agricultural and
management practices.
*fertilizer and pesticide use, irrigation waters, application of
manure, etc.
Practice safe food handling
Wash Hands!
Prevent field contamination (animal feces).
Protect food in the field, during processing, packing, and during
transport.
 http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInfor
mation/GuidanceDocuments/ProduceandPlanProducts/ucm064
574.htm
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EXEMPTION FROM LICENSING DOES
NOT MEAN EXEMPTION FROM
INSPECTION
When is a license required?
 If foods are processed by cutting, heating, canning,
freeze drying, mixing, coating, bottling, etc, AND if
an off-farm ingredient has been added during any of
those processes.
(for all other considerations other than the farmers’
market exemption)
Includes sales to the consumer, resale, wholesale,
grocery stores, bakeries, restaurants, cafeterias,
hospitals, schools, nursing homes, cross state lines,
internet sales, etc .
Licenses

Minnesota Wholesale Food
Handlers/Manufacturer License -if the majority of
your sales are wholesale (example: you sell to a grocery
store and then they sell your product)

This type of license operates under the Good
Manufacturing Practices found in the Code of Federal
Regulations in 21 CFR 110.
http://www.dhs.ca.gov/fdb/local/PDF/fsgmp.pdf
Licenses
 Minnesota Retail Food Handlers License: if
the majority of your sales are to the ultimate
consumer (plan review application must be
submitted at least 30 days prior to the start of
construction)
 This type of license operates under the Minnesota
Food Code Chapter 4626
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/rules/?id=4626
 Licensing agency is based upon: predominate annual
gross food sales (49% / 51%) and delegation
agreements.
What is an approved facility?
 Documentation of approval of the facility from your
local building, plumbing, fire, electrical and zoning
inspectors as needed
 Certificate of Occupancy
 Approved equipment (for example: coolers, freezers
or other processing equipment- No Household
Equipment
 Equipment must be NSF or commercial equivalent.
Look for this symbol:
When is a license required?
 If a person buys produce from another farmer for
resale, that person may need to be licensed as a
Wholesale Produce Dealer.
http://search2.mda.state.mn.us/cgibin/MsmGo.exe?grab_id=0&page_id=481&query=produce
%20dealer&cfgname=MssFindPreview.cfg&hiword=dealer
%20produce
Wholesale Bonding
 Any wholesale dealer or food processor who
purchases or contracts with other Minnesota dealers
or farmers for any of the following products needs to
be licensed as a Minnesota Wholesale Produce
Dealer:
A) Fresh fruits and vegetables
B) Milk and cream and products manufactured from
milk and cream
C) Poultry and eggs
Wholesale Bonding
 Retailers need to be licensed as Minnesota
Wholesale Produce Dealers if they purchase more
than $500 per month directly from Minnesota
farmers. A broker or agent who handles or deals in
produce with a Minnesota dealer or farmer for a
commission or fee must also be licensed. However,
farmer-owned cooperatives do not need to be
licensed as Minnesota Wholesale Produce Dealers if
75% of the cooperative's business is with members or
stockholder patrons.
Fruits and Vegetables
 Fresh, raw, no processing-> No License
 Fresh, raw, some processing but no purchased
ingredients->No License, must use approved facility.
 Fresh, raw, processing & purchased ingredients-> need
license
 Frozen, no purchased ingredients ->no license, must use
approved facility.
What can you do to prepare foods?
Without licensing, YOU CAN:
 Sort, trim as part of the harvesting process, husk,
wash to remove dirt and debris
 If you are in an inspected and approved
facility: You can heat, freeze, cut, dice, mix, can
and bottle food items-> as long as no food was
purchased from off the farm!
* *Rules and regulations must still be followed
Sale of Poultry and Meat
 No License required if from own production. Poultry
and livestock must be slaughtered and processed at a
USDA or MN Equal To facility with continuous
inspection.
 Product must be of a single ingredient!
 Farmer must have approved facility for storage and
delivery of the products.
 Meat shall be held under mechanical refrigeration if
out longer than 4 hours.
Inspected Slaughter and Processing Establishments
 List
of USDA Plants: 612-370-2400
 List
of MN=2USDA Plants: 651-201-6027
Meat & Poultry Labeling
 All packages must be properly labeled with the
product identity and the inspection brands of either
MDA or USDA
 Labeled with the name of product, list of ingredients,
name, address, and zip code. *Submit labels for approval
Sale of Shell Eggs
To sell to a grocery store, restaurant, or food service:
**Eggs must meet requirements of MN Statute 29 and MN Rules 1520
 Farmers must register with MDA, a license is not
required if eggs are from their own production.
 A registration form can be obtained by calling MDA
at (651) 201-6027, or on the MDA website
Eggs
 Sales of Shell Eggs to Grocery Stores and
Restaurants link:
http://www.mda.state.mn.us/food/safety/shelleggs-sale.aspx
 Egg Grading and Sales for Small Producers Exempt
from Licensing link:
http://www.mda.state.mn.us/sitecore/content/Glob
al/MDADocs/licensing/food/ag02433egg.aspx
Cleaning & Grading Shell Eggs
 Eggs must be clean and cannot be cleaned by wet
cleaning. Sand paper is acceptable.
 Candling, grading and sizing of eggs
• Must be done by the farmer or the purchaser.
• To obtain a handbook on grading eggs:
www.ams.usda.gov/poultry/resources/pypubs.htm#L3
 Eggs must be refrigerated at 45 degrees or below.
Packaging and Labeling Shell Eggs
 Eggs must be in a clean carton. Each carton must contain the same
grade and size egg.
Cartons MUST be labeled with:
1) Grade & size of egg
2)The name, address, and zip code of the packer or
distributer
3)A pack date in Julian Calendar form
4)Freshness date not to exceed 30 days from the date of
pack. “Expires by” or “best if used by”
5)Safe handling instructions: “To prevent illness from
Bacteria: keep refrigerated, cook eggs until yolks are
firm, and cook foods containing eggs thoroughly.”

Think Food Safety First… Food for thought items that
the chef, person in charge, and owner of the restaurant
need to ask before preserving or making salsa/jams/jelly’s
from safe, fresh, locally grown foods:
1) Have you talked to your local Food or Health Inspector first? This to
determine if the facility and operations would be okay to expand
upon due to changing your menu to include producing added food
items.
2) Is there any training or permit requirements prior to expanding
upon your menu or business?
3) Is there enough room for added storage and production?
4) Will you follow recommended processing guidelines from a reliable
source?
 CANNING:
5) Do you have tested recipes from a credible source? One true and
tried recipe book is: “So Easy to Preserve, Ball Blue Book of
Preserving.” So Easy to Preserve is a 314-page book with over
150 tested recipes along with step by step directions. Remember the
canning of meats, fish and most vegetables (except certain pickled)
are not allowed.
6) Are you planning to get creative and customize the recipe? If you
change these recipes, you could be creating a food safety hazard.
7) If you plan to make salsa, will your canned food item meet the
definition of an acidified food? Acid Food: Foods that have a
natural pH of 4.6 or below. Adding 10% vegetables (cilantro, corn,
beans, peppers, etc) will normally raise the pH above 4.6.
You can follow a set recipe for the salsa and later add fresh
ingredients, i.e. black beans, upon order or for a particular day’s
service.
8) Is your equipment up to date, in good working order and accurate?
9) If canning a fruit or pickled food item, do you have a pH meter that
is calibrated each day of processing to assure proper pH levels are
met? How are you going to record the daily results to include these
calibrations. Also, the pH will may change (equalize) as the acids are
absorbed throughout the canned foods. How will you check a batch
after production?
10) How will you assure that hands are thoroughly washed many
times while preserving the food?
11) How will all work surfaces and pieces of equipment be thoroughly
cleaned and sanitized?
12) How will you label and date all packages and jars?
13) Are your canned goods going to be stored in a cool, dry, darker
environment?
Questions – Open to Discussion
1. What about cooking or providing samples at farmers
market?
Reread the exemption subd. 9. This is not actually addressed,
but is it covered elsewhere in the license laws?
2) Labeling of home-made food. The statute exemption says
name & address of the of the person preparing and selling
the foods is the only thing needed. Is there any need for
ingredient or allergen labeling?
An answer for this question is in the process of being
determined by MDA legal council.
Further Questions?
 Marketing Local Food is a handbook designed to
help Minnesota farmers explore the various options
for marketing local food. It introduces the basics of
different marketing systems, suggests resources and
includes profiles of farmers who are selling farm
products directly to consumers via farmers' markets,
roadside stands, CSAs, on-farm stores; as well as
information and profiles about selling indirectly via
retail food establishments or food services.
 http://www.misa.umn.edu/Marketing_Local_Food2
Contacts
Minnesota Department of Agriculture
651.201.6027
www.mda.state.mn.us
 Jim Topie REHS, Food Inspector
651 226-9502 (BB) (Southern St. Louis County, Iron Range, Lake
County, Cook County)
[email protected]