Nevadans?

[HighNDryFarm]

I certified our Downtown Business Association as a Farmers Market for our own summer FM. We were required to make sure everyone was registered with the state and had thier certificate posted. I don't know what extent it takes to get registered/certified for the garden products but I know with the eggs its just a matter of going online as filing out the paperwork and send it in with a small fee. $15 or $20 I think , As long as you don't sell more then 300 (although I think I just got something that said they raised it to 500) eggs a year you don't have anymore requirements. You have to put your name, address, phone number. Your registration number and a packing date on your egg carton. You are also allowed to use egg cartons that have been previously used but you have to "x" out anything that doesn't apply to your eggs.

Thats for the State of CA but just go to your states website and search for egg producer.

Oh, and on the food, try to sell by the piece or bunch or you'll have to have your scale certified for accuracy. Selling at Farmers Markets you aren't subject to weights & measures like the grocery store is but I think if you weigh anything, the scale still needs to be certified.

If you have any questions I can answer I'll try to guide you a bit. Wish I was close enough to do it with you!

 

[sherylreno]

I don't think it's the same here in Nevada though. The people at the fm's here have scales but they are just normal ones. They don't mark their cartons at all and they don't show any certificates either. I think they do all of it ahead of time with the Manager of the fm but again I'm not really sure.

I think I need to call them and see what they say we should do?

 

[sherylreno]

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[americanvalkyrie]

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[americanvalkyrie]

Food question...
My son made a gluten-free shortbread dough that has a LOT of butter in it, then he left half of it in the fridge and it's all dried out and nasty now. Is it ok for the chickens with all that butter? All of the other ingredients are fine.

 

[chicharomirinda]

Kathy, sorry for your loss

the farmers market thing is intriguing if we can contribute eggs, etc and rotate who works the booth.

I was outside working all day yesterday. I didn't actually turn on my computer at all.

We got all the posts in the ground for the run. My parents, Jose and I all worked on it. Then in the afternoon, Jose and I built the nest boxes. I'm going to paint those with some leftover paint before installing but the bulk of the work on that is done.

I will have to catch up more later.

Elizabeth

 

[HighNDryFarm]

I don't think it's the same here in Nevada though. The people at the fm's here have scales but they are just normal ones. They don't mark their cartons at all and they don't show any certificates either. I think they do all of it ahead of time with the Manager of the fm but again I'm not really sure.

I think I need to call them and see what they say we should do?

Yes, it's best to call. You would never notice their certificate. They're just a piece of paper that usually hangs on the the back of their tent, not something customers would notice. And as far as the scales, they are regular scales, but they have to certify them for accuracy if your selling by weight. I'd be surprised if there wasn't a number on the carton somewhere to define it's origin, but I'm a born and bred CA girl so maybe I'm just so use to all the crappola the state requires. But if you start looking over an egg carton from the grocery store and read the requirements for egg handlers you'll see the stampings that tell you packing date and where it came from.

I do know that the reason to certify a market to be a "farmers market" is to not be subject to all the laws and regulations that are normally required for selling of food. It'll be interesting to see what NV requires.

 

[SunnyDawn]

OMG!!! I just typed an hour's worth of stuff and when I scrolled up to make sure I hadn't missed anyone and scrolled back down it had disappeared!!!

OK, sorry folks but this next post is gonna be quick and to the point. I was so nice and tactful the first time dang it!

Yes I love the idea of offering different things at the table but I think I remember that you have to list everything you plan to sell at your booth ahead of time. They don't want any surprises during the season so anyone committing to having stuff for sale has to commit early and follow through. Sheryl that would be great if you could get some more details on permits and see if you can get a farmer's market that is interested in another vendor to quote us some prices.

Talking about what we each think is the best way to do this is fine but at this stage it is just brainstorming and all ideas will go on the table to be vetoed or agreed upon by the entire team. I love new ideas but it has to work for the majority or it doesn't happen. Period. Keep in mind that until the numbers are in we have no idea if we could even make a profit at $5 a dozen so as exciting as this sounds it makes no sense to do it if the numbers don't support the expense, the time and the trouble.

Since I first put this (probably crazy) idea out there I will take some responsibility for making sure stuff gets done but we would need to make certain that those interested can commit to whatever job they are willing to do and stick to it. It's not fair to the few, that would be stuck taking up the slack, to do it any other way. That being said, I myself, am not willing to devote every single weekend to this venture but since we have quite a few that seem to be willing to "man" a table this does look like a viable venture at this stage.

There will be a lot of prep though and volunteers for that would be necessary too. For example, we would need about 3 dozen "blown out" eggs for display. I have a lovely basket left over from staging that will work quite well but fresh eggs cannot be stored in the sun so a colorful egg basket would require some blown eggs (this is a tough job all by itself) and the actual product would be kept in coolers.

Once the numbers are in we will have a meeting (attending by conference call is just fine) and vote on the important first issues. If we agree to go ahead then we will assign jobs at that time. It's important that this works for everyone involved and that we all agree to a few basics or this could blow up in our faces. Of course whatever happens will be a wonderful learning lesson and that is always a good thing in my book.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Yes chickens can eat butter. A little corn bread won't hurt them at all.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Yes, it's best to call. You would never notice their certificate. They're just a piece of paper that usually hangs on the the back of their tent, not something customers would notice. And as far as the scales, they are regular scales, but they have to certify them for accuracy if your selling by weight. I'd be surprised if there wasn't a number on the carton somewhere to define it's origin, but I'm a born and bred CA girl so maybe I'm just so use to all the crappola the state requires. But if you start looking over an egg carton from the grocery store and read the requirements for egg handlers you'll see the stampings that tell you packing date and where it came from.

I do know that the reason to certify a market to be a "farmers market" is to not be subject to all the laws and regulations that are normally required for selling of food. It'll be interesting to see what NV requires.

I've done some of this already but new calls will need to be made since regs change all the time. When I checked, selling eggs was fine with the proper permits, however selling baked goods was not allowed unless they are prepared in a "Commercially Certified Kitchen". So unless someone out there has access to this already and the owner of this kitchen is agreeable to letting others use it for set times, this is not a viable option.

Too bad too. I make some mean fruit breads (pumpkin, banana, carrot...).
Oh, BTW I have a gazillion egg cartons! I broke down and bought a case a few years back and then everyone suddenly started saving cartons for me. Having cartons at this stage is not a problem.


Elizabeth it sounds like you are in the nick of time getting those nests in! How exciting!

Lacey, I'm sorry you are having to deal with a hateful coworker! Women aren't the only insecure backbiting coworkers you will come across but it does seem like girls are taught to see other girls as competition more often than boys. Although men seem to have these issues with each other as well. It sucks when it happens though and it seems to happen no matter what you do.