Revisions coming to Maine Farmers' Market Law

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Tom Roberts on June 1, 2009 at 9:53pm

Paula Roberts of Meadowsweet Farm in Swanville sent me this email just after I posted the above:
Hi All,
I just spoke with Jane, and learned the following:
The non-farm vendors referred to, as I understand it, were selling craft/art products with no agricultural basis (photos and quilts).
The Attorney General's opinion is based only on the wording, as it says "product" not "products" but since it does say "products" in another place, one can't argue that "product" is plural and refers to all that a farmer brings.
The Department is not planning on visiting all markets and tossing out those who aren't selling products that come under the law unless there is a particular complaint. And the law only governs markets that call themselves "Farmers Market" so some have gotten around it by calling themselves "Farmers and Artisans Market" or something else.
In any case, it would be a good idea for us to think about how we want the law to read and pass that on to members of the committee in the legislature or the Dept. of Ag or go to the meeting at the 2010 Ag Trade Show and participate in this work. The current law was drafted in 1991, with some changes in 1993, and it needs to be updated, as Jane is quick to agree.
Paula

Permalink Reply by Colin Powell on June 1, 2009 at 10:27pm

Tom, thanks for bringing this to my attention. I will certainly give it a look.

Permalink Reply by Joe on June 2, 2009 at 5:36am

I, too, spoke with Jane. She seems to be quite busy with this issue. I would agree that the attorney generals opinion is not in line with most market members opinions of the rule. This definitely has to be looked into and rewritten accordingly. What are some people's opinions about the 75% rule? How should it be changed and/or interpreted?

Also, the complaint was for non-farm goods. The articles in question were made in Maine by artisans so thereby meeting at least the spirit of the law. At least that was the feeling of the market board. Do you feel this is the proper place to sell these Maine made items? My opinion is that these vendors help draw more people to the market and that can only be a good thing. If the ratios are maintained so that the market maintains its ag roots, this "extra" is a bonus for vendors and customers alike.

After all, this is a market. If the non vegetable vendors don't get business, they will weed themselves out and not participate.

What's your opinions?

Permalink Reply by Tom Roberts on June 2, 2009 at 9:04am

The issue of crafters at farmers' markets is a complicated one, with many aspects to be considered. I plan to write an article on the subject within the next few days and post it in the discussion area in the Farmers' Market Group. I hope to suggest a way of thinking about crafters at market, and, by extension, all non-farm local small businesses who might apply to a market, that will also clarify our thinking about many aspects of our markets.

Permalink Reply by Colin Powell on June 2, 2009 at 9:12am

Yeah, being a new market, we were surprised to find a number of dissenting positions on the subject of crafters. I would also agree that that is the single largest issue in the current Maine 75 percent law.

On the other hand, there are also vendors who sell products which are hard to quantify percentages of what they make. I think about smoked meats and prepared food vendors who may not make 100% of the raw materials, but then turn it into something themselves. I guess one could argue they make it 100% themselves, but they certainly didn't grow it.

Perhaps there ought to be a clause in the law about 75% growing applying to growers of vegetables and meats? With a less stringent policy on prepared food, bakers, cheesemakers, etc... And then a whole other section on crafters having to produce their crafts by hand, locally?

That might just become a legal morass though...I'll keep thinking.

Permalink Reply by Joe on June 2, 2009 at 8:02pm

Some "crafters" use raw materials from farms. For example, one soap maker I know uses goat's milk to make some of her soaps. Should she be accepted? How about a cheese maker who doesn't have any milk producing animals? I think the number of "true" farmers are limited and if we went strictly by the law, the market would lack some diversity that it now enjoys.

And what of gardeners? What is the difference between a "farmer" who grows veggies and such on 5 acres and a gardener who does the same thing on an acre or less? If both are producing more than they can consume, are they both "farmers" and allowed to sell at a farmers' market? Does a farmer have to have animals to qualify or a certain number of acres? Should a farmer who specializes in one crop be restricted to selling just that crop? Does he have to sell only that crop at his farm stand? Should farm stands and farmers' markets have the same or similar standards(i.e. the 75% rule)?

Permalink Reply by Tom Roberts on June 2, 2009 at 8:57pm

Hi Joe,
Many of these theoretical questions you pose have been addressed by markets over the years. The amount and type of processing done by the member is generally used as a guide as to whether the item is eligible for sale at market. For example, we wouldn't expect bread bakers to grow their own grain; the process they go through to make the bread from the ingredients is enough. This is akin to allowing a farmer to buy seeds and seedlings, plant them, and sell the resulting produce as their own. In other words it is the amount and skill level involved in processing that occurs to go from the original ingredients to the final product. Likewise for cheese making, jam & pickle production, smoking, soap making, etc. What the artisan is offering is the result of their skills and the time invested in production.

Also, artisans (bread, cheese, kraut, soap, etc.) are usually differentiated from crafters (painters, jewelers, photographers, carvers, blacksmiths, etc) by noting that the artisan is creating a food product, or a product produced from food, while the crafter is not.

Paris, France, is surrounded by thousands of farms, some as small as a quarter acre. Gardeners whose passion has taken over their lives to the point of needing to sell their produce are certainly farmers, albeit micro-sized and often a bit naiive when it comes to pricing.

For your other questions, perhaps you should reflect on those a bit yourself. Ask the Dept of Ag how big a "farm" is.

Permalink Reply by Tom Roberts on June 2, 2009 at 9:03pm

The actual statute can be found at http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/7/title7sec415.html, and there were some minor amendments in 2005.

Permalink Reply by Joe on June 2, 2009 at 9:12pm

The question of defining a farm is something Jane and I discussed. For the purposes of the statute you quote, there is no actual definition spelled out. This could open the debate even further.

As far as your definition of artisan vs crafter, I'm not sure soap is a food product. And certainly not all soap is made from food products. So, again, is a soap maker eligible for inclusion in a farmers' market.

Further, as far as reflecting on the questions I've posed, that is a given. I put them on this forum to get others thoughts on them.

Permalink Reply by Tom Roberts on June 2, 2009 at 9:38pm

I think some folks are getting this backward. The law wants to define what minimum standards there are for an entity to be called a farmers' market. What any market wants to do beyond that should be up to the market, however such decisions are made in that market. If someone at a farmers' market is selling farm produce ("produce" in the general sense here) then they need to have produced at least 75% of it themselves. If they are selling jewelry or soap, then the law doesn't apply to them and it's up to the market to decide if it wants to let them in via whatever standards they have developed for such things.
The law does not say that everyone at a farmers' market must do such and such, only the producers of the products listed need to -- and there needs to be at least two of them. Perhaps this should be made more explicit in the wording of the law.

Permalink Reply by Joe on June 2, 2009 at 9:50pm

The complaint was because our market has crafters at it and a farmer was denied access to the market so he complained to the state that a "farmers' market" consists of only farmers (food producers) and specifically excludes crafters and non-food related products. That is the impetus behind this push to more specifically define what a farmers' market looks like.

So, though you and I seem to agree that if we as a market want to include crafters or artisans, that is up to us. But according to the state and the law as the state reads it, we are not able to make that determination for ourselves.

By the way, the farmer was not excluded for any reason other than he was late in applying for this season.

I think we are in agreement Tom and share basically the same view. I am interested in knowing what everyone thinks about these matters so that we can build some sort of consensus for the meeting next spring at the Ag Show or whenever the meeting will take place.

Permalink Reply by Becky Morse on June 3, 2009 at 4:14am

Hello Tom, Joe & others,

We are Artisan Soap makers and currently participate in 4 Farmers' Markets. I had the pleasure to speak to Jane as well and the discussion has brought concern to me and local Artisans.

We create Goat Milk soap using the old fashion method called Cold Processed. We use farm based natural and Organic ingredients. As a soap maker I would like to consider our product a "farm" product. We milk goats (as well as buy milk from a local Maine farmer) we grow and purchase farm grown herbs and in some cases infuse oils with herbs grown in Maine to add to our soap. All of our ingredients are natural and in one place or another were grown on a farm either in Maine or around the world.

I believe anyone who produces a product from "Farm" ingredients should be allowed to participate in a Farmers' Market. I agree there needs to be some sort of cap on how many "crafters" are allowed into a Farmers' Market but diversity does attract more customers.

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