BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 224
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Date of Hearing: May 1, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE
Susan Talamantes Eggman, Chair
AB 224 (Gordon) - As Amended: April 25, 2013
SUBJECT : Agricultural products: direct marketing:
community-supported agriculture.
SUMMARY : Includes community-supported agriculture (CSA) to the
California Grown legislative findings and declarations to have
the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) assist
in their organizing, as specified; creates definitions dealing
with CSAs; and, authorizes a fee be established by regulation
for specified purposes. Specifically, this bill :
1)Adds CSA to the legislative findings and declarations,
suggesting that CDFA assist producers in organizing by
providing technical advice on marketing and complying with
direct marketing regulations.
2)Creates new definitions affecting CSAs as follows:
a) Defines a "CSA program" to mean a program whereby a
registered California direct marketing producer (CDMP) , or
a group of registered CDMPs, growing food for a group of
California consumer shareholders or subscribers who pledge
or contract to buy, on a prepayment basis, a portion of
future crops, animal production, or both, from these
registered CDMPs;
b) Defines a "single-farm CSA program" to mean a program
through which all products originate from one registered
CDMP;
c) Defines a "multi-farm CSA" as a group of registered
CDMP, which declare their association annually when
certification takes place, and all delivered farm products
originate from one or more of the CDMP farm group; and,
d) Defines "farm" to mean a farm operated by a registered
CDMP.
3)Requires any registered CDMP that markets whole produce, shell
eggs, or processed foods through a single-farm or multifarm
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CSA to comply with the following:
a) Requires annual registration with CDFA or county
agricultural commissioners as a registered CDMP, including
the following:
i) A statement specifying if the producer is part of a
single-farm or multi-farm CSA program; and,
ii) A signed statement that the producer is in
compliance with on-farm food safety good agricultural
practices, as defined by CDFA, in cooperation with the
direct marketing producer industry.
b) Label the consumer box or container used for delivery of
farm products to consumers with the name and address of the
farm delivering it;
c) Maintain the consumer boxes or containers in a condition
that prevents contamination;
d) Inform consumers, either by including a printed list in
the consumer box or container or by delivering a list
electronically to the consumer, of the farm of origin or
each item in the consumer box or container;
e) Maintain records that document the contents and origin
of all items included in each consumer box or container;
and,
f) Comply with all labeling and identification requirements
for shell eggs and processed foods imposed pursuant to the
provisions of the Health and Safety Code (HSC), including,
but not limited to, the farm's name, physical address and
telephone number.
4)Requires a registered CDMP that complies with registration, in
accordance with item 3) a) above, to be deemed an approved
source, as defined in Section 113735 of the HSC.
5)Prohibits anything in this section to be construed to remove
the requirements of a CSA program from obtaining all required
permits and licenses, including, but not limited to, a produce
handler license or cottage food license.
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6)Requires an annual registration fee, not to exceed fifty
dollars ($50), be established by CDFA through regulation that
covers actual costs of registration processing and
enforcement.
7)Requires registration fees collected to be deposited in the
CDFA fund and be used to administer this article as follows:
a) Create and maintain an online data filing system process
for producers to register;
b) Reimburse county agricultural commissioners for expenses
incurred implementing or aiding in the registration
process; and,
c) Coordinate expenses occurring from meetings and actions
of any ad hoc direct marketing advisory committee created
by CDFA.
8)Requires waiver of all or a portion of this annual
registration fee for a CDMP registration or processing, when
registration for CDMP is combined with other annual
registration or certification processes where a fee is
extracted under the purview of this division.
9)Requires the provisions of this article to be complied with
regardless of granting any waiver of fees.
10)Includes disclaimer of reimbursement to local agencies or
school districts.
EXISTING LAW makes legislative findings and declarations on
direct marketing of agricultural products as being beneficial to
the industry and the consumer, a good public relations tool, and
suggesting CDFA maintain a direct marketing program; encourage
the sale of California grown fresh produce; develop a regulatory
scheme providing flexibility that makes this a viable marketing
system; and, CDFA is to assist producers in organizing Certified
Farmers Markets (CFM) and other forms of direct marketing with
technical and regulatory assistance. Statutes provide
exemptions for direct sales from standard size, standard pack,
container, and labeling requirements at CFMs and retail stand
locations, as specified, but are subject to compliance with
regulations governing maturity and quality, federal and state
marketing orders, health and safety laws, regulations, or
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ordinances, and requires all products sold in closed containers
to be labeled with the producers name, address and zip code, as
well as, a declaration of commodity identity and net quality in
the package. Statutes provide for a certification process for
growers and CFMs, to ensure producers grow what they are
selling.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. Legislative Counsel has keyed this
bill fiscal.
COMMENTS : CSA has been a growing marketing method over the last
two decades. Originally, participating consumers would prepay
the farmer for the produce, thereby providing the financing to
the farmer to operate. While this model is still used, several
other models of CSAs have developed, including paying for
weekly, bimonthly, or monthly box deliveries, discounts for
assisting with planting or harvesting, providing consumers many
different options and flexibility.
This one time neighborly sharing of produce grown by farmers,
has fledged into a flourishing business model. According to the
author, the "rapid expansion of CSAs in recent years along with
the adaptation to the original CSA model demonstrates that CSAs
are in need of definitions and parameters for its regulation."
While CDFA has been given legislative direction for working with
all types of direct marketing, little oversight has been given
to CSAs due to CDFAs lack of financial support. Some
entrepreneurs have taken advantage of this by providing produce
that has been purchased or not grown in California, while using
names that suggest they are growers or producers of the products
they offer.
With the 2010 passage of the federal Food Safety Modernization
Act, among many of the new food safety requirements, having food
come from an approved source is one. CDFA will need to develop
what are considered to be "on-farm, food safety, good
agricultural practices" for producers to follow, as required by
this bill. This is an important element for food safety.
The committee may wish to consider adding to the single-farm and
multi-farm definitions after, "originate" the words "and
produced", in order to ensure the products are grown on site.
(Page 4, lines 4 and 9)
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The committee may wish to consider stating a time line such as,
two or three calendar years, for the maintenance of records and
permitting access to those records upon the request of any
government official. (Page 5, line 2)
The committee may wish to consider, if a registered CDMP is to
be deemed an "approved source", in accordance with HSC
requirements, that they comply with this entire article, rather
than just the registration requirements. (Page 5, line 9)
The committee may wish to consider rewording Sec. 47062 (b) (1)
and (c) as follows to clarify its purpose:
47062 (b) (1) Create and maintain an online data filing and
registration system for producers. (Page 5, lines 25 and
26)
47062 (c) All or part of this annual registration fee shall
be waived, if fees are paid by a California Direct
marketing producer for registration or certification of any
other program under the purview of this division. (Page 5,
lines 33 through 37)
AB 996 and this bill both amend FAC Section 47000 but
differently. The committee may ask the authors to work out
these differences or there will be chaptering out of one or the
other's language.
AB 996 and AB 224 both provide new provisions for direct
marketing producers to register, but with different terms and
code locations. The committee may wish to consider which policy
language to adopt.
RELATED LEGISLATION : AB 996 (Dickinson) 2013-14 Session,
recasts and expands Certified Farmers' Market laws,
requirements, and fees; and, increases penalties for violations.
SB 599 (Evans) 2013-14 Session, extends the sunset date to
January 1, 2018 for the collection of certified farmers' market
operator fees and enforcement provisions of direct marketing.
SB 513 (Cannella), Chapter 337, Statutes of 2011, extended the
sunset CFM fees to January 1, 2014.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
AB 224
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Support
Community Alliance with Family Farms (Sponsor)
California Farm Bureau Federation
California Federation of Certified Farmers' Markets
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Jim Collin / AGRI. / (916) 319-2084