BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH
Senator Ed Hernandez, O.D., Chair
BILL NO: AB 2539
AUTHOR: Ting
AMENDED: June 10, 2014
HEARING DATE: June 18, 2014
CONSULTANT: Marchand
SUBJECT : Certified farmers' markets.
SUMMARY : Makes various changes to the rules governing certified
farmers' markets, including requiring all meat products offered
for sale in a farmers' market to be from approved sources and to
be maintained at 41 degrees Fahrenheit, prohibiting smoking of
nicotine products within 25 feet of the commerce area of the
farmers' market, and prohibiting the self-serving of food
samples.
Existing law:
1.Establishes the California Retail Food Code (CRFC) to regulate
retail food safety, which is enforced by local environmental
health officers.
2.Defines "potentially hazardous food" as a food that requires
time or temperature control to limit pathogenic micro-organism
growth or toxin formation.
3.Defines "certified farmers' market" as a location that is
certified through the enforcement officers of the county
agricultural commissioners and operated pursuant to provisions
of existing law that permit the direct marketing of
agricultural products.
4.Requires a permit to be obtained by the person or organization
responsible for facilities that are shared by two or more food
facilities, in addition to a permit issued to each food
facility participating in a community event (applies to
operators of farmers' markets where temporary or mobile food
facilities are selling food).
5.Prohibits food preparation at certified farmers' markets with
the exception of food samples, and requires the distribution
of food samples to meet certain sanitary condition
requirements, including the following:
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a. Requires the samples to be kept in approved,
clean, nonabsorbent and covered containers intended to
be used with foods;
b. Requires that clean, disposable plastic gloves
be used when cutting food samples, and that food
intended for sampling be washed;
c. Requires potable water be available for
handwashing and sanitizing; and,
d. Requires potentially hazardous food samples be
maintained at or below 45 degrees Fahrenheit and to be
disposed of within two hours after cutting.
6.Prohibits live animals, birds, or fowl from being within 20
feet of any area where food is stored or held for sale, with
the exception of guide dogs, signal dogs, or service dogs when
used in a manner specified in existing law.
This bill:
1.Requires all processed meat, poultry, and fish products in a
certified farmers' market to be from approved sources, as
specified, and to be properly labeled or have documentation
present at the point of sale that demonstrates compliance with
this requirement.
2.Requires all processed meat, poultry, and fish products
offered for sale in a certified farmers' market to be
transported, stored, displayed, and maintained at a
temperature of 41 degrees Fahrenheit or colder. Requires the
temperature holding capabilities of the storage containers to
be sufficient to maintain safe product temperatures, and to
have smooth and non-absorbent surfaces.
3.Prohibits the smoking of cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, and
other nicotine products within 25 feet of the common commerce
area comprised of sales personnel and shopping customers of
the certified farmers' market.
4.Requires each food sample distributed at a certified farmers'
market to be distributed by the producer individually and
directly to each consumer, and prohibits consumer self-serving
of samples.
5.Permits a certified farmers' market or an enforcement offer to
cause immediate removal and disposal of any potentially
hazardous food samples that are not in compliance with
provisions of law requiring these samples to be maintained at
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3
or below 45 degrees Fahrenheit and to be disposed of within
two hours after cutting.
6.Specifies that if producers use only single-use utensils and
cutting surfaces, or maintain an adequate supply of clean
replacement utensils and cutting surfaces, then warewashing
facilities are not required where food samples are distributed
at certified farmers' markets.
7.Clarifies that tents, canopies, or other overhead coverings
are not required at certified farmers' markets for fresh whole
produce sales displays or storage, except when specifically
required under existing law.
8.Requires any cutting or distribution of samples at a certified
farmers' market occur only under a tent, canopy or other
overhead covering.
9.Requires flavored nuts and dried fruits that are being sold at
certified farmers' markets on a bulk or non-prepackaged basis
to be displayed and dispensed from covered containers.
10.Clarifies that trimming whole produce for sale is not
considered food preparation for purposes of the prohibition of
food preparation at certified farmers' markets.
11.Clarifies that the existing prohibition against keeping or
allowing live animals, birds, or fowl within 20 feet of any
area where food is stored or held for sale within a certified
farmers' market is also a prohibition against any individual
bringing a live animal, bird or fowl into this area.
12.Specifies that if vendors selling food adjacent to and under
the jurisdiction of a certified farmers' market are not
selling potentially hazardous foods or engaging in food
preparation, then the certified farmers' market is not
required to obtain a specified permit for these vendors.
Permits vendors that are selling food adjacent to and under
the jurisdiction of a certified farmers' market, to also
prepare and distribute samples of their products in a manner
that complies with the distribution of samples for certified
farmers' markets.
13.Revises how temporary food facilities are required to protect
non-prepackaged food from contamination by requiring the
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temporary food facility to either enclose the food facility
with screens, or use food compartments, rather than both of
these methods.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, negligible state fiscal effect. Rules governing local
food facilities, including certified farmers' markets, are
locally enforced. As this bill merely clarifies and modifies
rules governing food safety at certified farmers' markets and
does not expand duties or create a higher level of service, it
is not expected to create state-reimbursable mandate costs.
PRIOR VOTES :
Assembly Health: 13- 4
Assembly Appropriations:12- 5
Assembly Floor: 52- 23
COMMENTS :
1.Author's statement. According to the author, this bill
proposes a series of updates to the certified farmers' market
portion of the CRFC, developed in consultation with certified
farmers' market operators and vendors. The author states that
these changes are primarily clarifying and technical, and are
intended to promote consistency in enforcement of the law
among county health departments.
2.Issues being addressed by this bill. According to the author,
this bill makes the following changes to the laws regulating
food in certified farmers' markets:
a. Meat. Current law does not address meat products in
certified farmers' markets, because when the original law
was written three decades ago, no one anticipated the
popularity of products such as grass-fed beef or organic
meats. Now these items are commonly sold by local farmers
at the markets. This bill requires these products to be
transported, stored and maintained at 41 degrees
Fahrenheit, which is consistent with standards for meat
elsewhere in the California Retail Food Code.
b. Samples. This bill requires food samples to be
distributed individually and directly to the consumer.
Currently, most certified farmers' market vendors give
out the samples in this manner, which is considered a
best practice to minimize the health risks of potentially
hundreds of hands touching a container. Current law
requires only that they must be given out in a sanitary
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manner, and this bill simply specifies what constitutes a
sanitary manner.
c. Produce trimming. This bill clarifies that trimming
of produce shall not be considered "food preparation."
Food preparation triggers many other requirements such as
having handwashing water available, and this provision
clarifies existing law, which has been interpreted
differently in some counties.
d. Permits. Currently a certified farmers' market
operator is required to get a special, costly permit if
vendors adjacent to the produce portion of the market are
permitted as "temporary food facilities" or "mobile food
facilities." This bill removes this requirement when
these food vendors are selling only non-hazardous foods
such as baked goods and are not engaging in food
preparation. This streamlines requirements and reduces
expenses for farmers' market operators.
e. Animals. Existing law already prohibits animals, but
enforcement is difficult because the law says no animals
are "allowed," which makes the market operator in
violation when an animal is brought into the market.
This bill also prohibits any person from bringing an
animal into the market, with the exception of service
animals, which then allows the individual to be cited,
not just the market operator.
f. Smoking. This bill specifies that smoking is not
permitted within 25 feet of a certified farmers' market.
Currently, most farmers' markets have a policy against
smoking in the market. However, because it is only a
policy, they have difficulty enforcing it. This bill
will enable farmers' market operators to notify persons
violating the policy that it is illegal to do so.
g. Enforcement. This bill authorizes a certified
farmers' market operator or an enforcement officer to
cause immediate removal and disposal of any potentially
hazardous food samples found not in compliance with the
law. This strengthens enforcement of existing law.
3.Related legislation. AB 2130 (Pan) would repeal provisions of
law enacted last year that prohibit retail food employees from
contacting exposed ready-to-eat foods with their bare hands,
and replaces these provisions with the law that existed prior
to the enactment of these provisions, which require food
employees to minimize bare hand contact with ready-to-eat
foods. AB 2130 passed the Senate Health Committee by a vote of
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9-0 on June 11, 2014.
4.Prior legislation. AB 1252 (Committee on Health), Chapter 556,
Statutes of 2013, made numerous technical, clarifying, and
non-controversial changes to the CRFC, and prohibited bare
hand contact with ready-to-eat food without prior
authorization from the local environmental health department.
SB 359 (Hernandez) of 2012 would have enacted provisions
substantially similar to AB 1252. These provisions were
subsequently removed and the bill was amended to address a
different subject matter.
SB 946 (Steinberg), Chapter 650, Statutes of 2011, also would
have included provisions substantially similar to AB 1252.
These provisions were deleted and the bill was amended to
address a different subject matter.
SB 602 (Padilla), Chapter 309, Statutes of 2010, required a food
handler to obtain a food handler card within 30 days after
employment at a food facility by successfully completing a
training course, and every three years thereafter.
SB 241 (George Runner), Chapter 571, Statutes of 2009, enacted
a number of clean up changes to the Food Code and provided for
the regulation of temporary and mobile food facilities under
the Food Code.
SB 1359 (George Runner), of 2008, was substantially similar to
SB 241. This bill was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger. In
his veto message, the Governor stated that it was due to the
historic delay in passing the 2008-09 State Budget, and the
bill did not meet the standard of the highest priority for
California.
SB 744 (George Runner), Chapter 96, Statutes of 2007, enacted
numerous technical, clarifying, and non-substantive changes to
the Food Code.
SB 144 (George Runner), Chapter 23, Statutes of 2006, repealed
and reenacted the California Uniform Retail Food Facilities
Law as the Food Code.
5.Support. The California Federation of Certified Farmers'
Markets writes that this bill addresses the need for updating
the pertinent code sections to remain up to date with changes
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in the industry and products being offered at Certified
Farmers' Markets, while continuing to protect the health of
the California consumer.
SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION :
Support: California Federation of Certified Farmers' Markets
Oppose: None received.
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