Dear Subscribers,
President Gary Ranker has decided not to hold a Board of Managers meeting for July. Look for an announcement for the next meeting, tentatively scheduled for the first part of August via teleconference.
IMPORTANT --- IMPORTANT -- IMPORTANT
As most of you know, for the past several years we have been working to allow beekeepers to legally process and sell honey direct to consumers without having to invest a large sum of money in a processing facility. With recommendations of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Small Farms Subcommittee Report to the legislature, in 2011 we are well on our way to that goal. The report covered several key small farm enterprises. (pastured poultry, eggs, honey, and cottage foods). In the course of several meetings hosted by FDACS this spring and with very positive input from Florida beekeepers the rule making process for honey has been put in motion. On May 6, 2011 the legislature passed HB 7209 which allowed for cottage food operations.
At the May 13, 2011 meeting of the Food Safety and Defense Advisory Council, FDACS stated that honey would be treated separately from cottage food. Beekeepers in correspondence to FDACS supported allowing up to 250 gallons of honey to be processed without requiring a permitted and inspected facility. I have been asked by FDACS to contact beekeepers for input on the important question: should we have honey included in the definition of cottage food or maintain it as a separate entity as reported in Small Farms report? This is where we need beekeepers to voice their opinion. By including honey under cottage food, we have the opportunity to accelerate the rule making process and be covered under Fl statute.
Please review the preliminary rules on cottage foods and determine if this is a good thing for you. The major difference is; with inclusion in the cottage food language, beekeepers will be subject to the $15,000 limit instead of a quantity limit. The other criteria will remain the same, i.e. disclaimer on label, direct sales only, complaint driven inspection, etc.
Now the important part. Make your opinion known in correspondence with the FDACS. Below is a sample message to use showing support of having honey included in the cottage food language.
Regards
Tony Hogg
Chair- Small Bottling Committee
Capthogg@bellsouth.net
Sample message to Lee Cornman, Acting Director, Division of Food Safety
-----
To: lee.cornman@freshfromflorida.com
Cc: daniel.hixson@freshfromflorida.com
Subject: Honey
Ms Cornman,
I am a registered Florida beekeeper. I support having honey included in the definition of cottage food as allowed under HB 7209.
Respectfully,
No deadline has been set on this process at the moment and more information will be forthcoming on this issue, but the sooner Ms. Cornman receives information from Florida State Beekeepers Association members, the better.
The next paper newsletter, The Florida Beekeeper, will be published next week. Please send news of local association activities to me as soon as possible.
Dr. Malcolm T. Sanford
Executive Secretary
Florida State Beekeepers Association
http://floridabeekeepers.org
beeactor@apisenterprises.com
President Gary Ranker has decided not to hold a Board of Managers meeting for July. Look for an announcement for the next meeting, tentatively scheduled for the first part of August via teleconference.
IMPORTANT --- IMPORTANT -- IMPORTANT
As most of you know, for the past several years we have been working to allow beekeepers to legally process and sell honey direct to consumers without having to invest a large sum of money in a processing facility. With recommendations of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Small Farms Subcommittee Report to the legislature, in 2011 we are well on our way to that goal. The report covered several key small farm enterprises. (pastured poultry, eggs, honey, and cottage foods). In the course of several meetings hosted by FDACS this spring and with very positive input from Florida beekeepers the rule making process for honey has been put in motion. On May 6, 2011 the legislature passed HB 7209 which allowed for cottage food operations.
At the May 13, 2011 meeting of the Food Safety and Defense Advisory Council, FDACS stated that honey would be treated separately from cottage food. Beekeepers in correspondence to FDACS supported allowing up to 250 gallons of honey to be processed without requiring a permitted and inspected facility. I have been asked by FDACS to contact beekeepers for input on the important question: should we have honey included in the definition of cottage food or maintain it as a separate entity as reported in Small Farms report? This is where we need beekeepers to voice their opinion. By including honey under cottage food, we have the opportunity to accelerate the rule making process and be covered under Fl statute.
Please review the preliminary rules on cottage foods and determine if this is a good thing for you. The major difference is; with inclusion in the cottage food language, beekeepers will be subject to the $15,000 limit instead of a quantity limit. The other criteria will remain the same, i.e. disclaimer on label, direct sales only, complaint driven inspection, etc.
Now the important part. Make your opinion known in correspondence with the FDACS. Below is a sample message to use showing support of having honey included in the cottage food language.
Regards
Tony Hogg
Chair- Small Bottling Committee
Capthogg@bellsouth.net
Sample message to Lee Cornman, Acting Director, Division of Food Safety
-----
To: lee.cornman@freshfromflorida.com
Cc: daniel.hixson@freshfromflorida.com
Subject: Honey
Ms Cornman,
I am a registered Florida beekeeper. I support having honey included in the definition of cottage food as allowed under HB 7209.
Respectfully,
No deadline has been set on this process at the moment and more information will be forthcoming on this issue, but the sooner Ms. Cornman receives information from Florida State Beekeepers Association members, the better.
The next paper newsletter, The Florida Beekeeper, will be published next week. Please send news of local association activities to me as soon as possible.
Dr. Malcolm T. Sanford
Executive Secretary
Florida State Beekeepers Association
http://floridabeekeepers.org
beeactor@apisenterprises.com