The Conundrum of Selling Meat Birds

[halimak1]

I'm just a little confused. Alabama allows processing under the federal exemption for growers up to 1000 or 20000 birds on farm. So why can't you sell by processed weight? Calling the processing a service doesn't matter under PPIA.

For the extras, I would bag them separately and not charge people for them, if they want them they can have them as a "lagniappe" as they say in lower alabama. (A little something extra for free!) So charge a fair price for yourself, without needing the extra ounces from the bits to make your money back.



All that to say: I think you can sell them at processed weight

It's my understanding (and I could be totally wrong) that I would have to be a certified seller and have my farm certified and to have my processing area certified... Sort of like making baked goods at home and selling them at the farmers market, we have to put out there that our kitchens aren't certified. It's a way of telling people that they're buying a product in good faith without the legalese?

 

[cottontail farm]

I would strongly suggest that you just phone your local AG office and ask rather than make a guess. Pretty sure this varies from state to state and in no way would I want to assume.

 

[halimak1]

I would strongly suggest that you just phone your local AG office and ask rather than make a guess. Pretty sure this varies from state to state and in no way would I want to assume.

I sure will, thanks! You're right!

 

[halimak1]

I know this thread might seem like "duh" things to everyone else, but I really have no clue and I hope this can help someone else too! Thank you guys so much for your titbits of info!

 

[donrae]

I agree, check with your Dept of Ag. They're usually good folks. Info should be available on their website, also.

USDA is not interested in someone doing less than 1000 birds. Here in Oregon, neither is the state Ag Dept. As long as you process and sell on the farm, that is. No taking offsite and selling, like at farmer's markets. How the State guy explained it at a seminar I was just at......when they buy at a farmer's market, they (the customers) assume you're inspected or certified. When they come to the farm to pick up the butchered birds, they can see your set up with tarps and tents or whatever you have and decide for themselves if your level of cleanliness is up to standard

 

[halimak1]

I agree, check with your Dept of Ag. They're usually good folks. Info should be available on their website, also.

USDA is not interested in someone doing less than 1000 birds. Here in Oregon, neither is the state Ag Dept. As long as you process and sell on the farm, that is. No taking offsite and selling, like at farmer's markets. How the State guy explained it at a seminar I was just at......when they buy at a farmer's market, they (the customers) assume you're inspected or certified. When they come to the farm to pick up the butchered birds, they can see your set up with tarps and tents or whatever you have and decide for themselves if your level of cleanliness is up to standard

Haha! Free picture by the killing cones, lol! That is a great point. I'm definitely going to call them tomorrow to make sure of what I can and cannot do.

 

[eviemethugh]

I agree, check with your Dept of Ag. They're usually good folks. Info should be available on their website, also.

USDA is not interested in someone doing less than 1000 birds. Here in Oregon, neither is the state Ag Dept. As long as you process and sell on the farm, that is. No taking offsite and selling, like at farmer's markets. How the State guy explained it at a seminar I was just at......when they buy at a farmer's market, they (the customers) assume you're inspected or certified. When they come to the farm to pick up the butchered birds, they can see your set up with tarps and tents or whatever you have and decide for themselves if your level of cleanliness is up to standard

Yup! Same here in NC, I was all "please tell me of the 92 certifications I need" and they were like "please stop emailing us" actually, they were really helpful, but basically told me to do what I want and "keep records just in case"......I don't know who is ever going to find/check said records of our freezer temps since we weren't registered anywhere...but we did what we assume they wanted.
You can't even get a farm tax ID number until you've proven you can sell 15k a year! They really just don't want to mess with you, we aren't worth it!
We are still slowly acquiring everything we can in terms of state ID numbers, state vet numbers for the farm, and meat handlers license and whatnot. Most of them are free with a "complimentary" site visit. It just takes time.