Fresh fruits and vegetables require no licensing or permitting.

If your product needs any temperature control (hot or cold) you will need to have a RFE (Retail Food Establishment) License or a FSO (Food Service Operation) License from the Country where your business resides to sell at a Farmers Market. In addition to the RFE or FSO you may need:

• If your product is raw meat, it will need to be butchered at a ODA or Federally licensed facility bearing the stamp of that organization. You will also need an ODA registration for a food warehouse facility registration.
• If your product is raw eggs your farm will need a large or small egg producer registration from ODA.
• If your product is cooked food or ready to eat food, you will need to contact your home county health department as your need of a FSO or RFE. Typically, FSO are for cooking on site and RFE are for maintain temperatures of already cooked products. We will accept either, but your County Public Health department will need to make the determination as to which license you need.

If your product comes under the Cottage Food laws. A great resource for Cottage food laws in the state of Ohio is https://agri.ohio.gov/divisions/food-safety/resources/cottage-food.

IF your product is not allowed via Cottage Food Laws in Ohio and is not previously mentioned you will either need an RFE, FSO or it might need produced in a commercial licensed kitchen and a Canning or preserving License from ODA. Your best resource for that is your County Public Health department.

Please read the cottage food laws carefully as they have specific packaging and labeling guidelines that need to be adhered to at our market.

If you have specific questions about CVFM and the your products from a licensing point of view please feel free to contact me at mike@tierraverdefarms.com.