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Ease roadside ag rules

The Bakersfield Californian | Monday, May 12 2008 8:11 PM

Last Updated: Monday, May 12 2008 8:14 PM

Farmers deserve the opportunity to maximize the potential revenue from their products, and consumers deserve the opportunity to enjoy those products in all their logical variations.

Both groups would benefit if a new California bill loosening restrictions on roadside fruit stands and farmers' markets becomes law.

A bill by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, would allow growers to repackage fruit that would otherwise have to be thrown out because it's split, damaged or otherwise not attractive to buyers.

The bill would help operators of small farms by relaxing the California retail food code to allow them to use otherwise unsaleable fruit in pies, jams or bags of dried fruit at their roadside stands.

The law currently requires retailers to have clean running water and restrooms, but those requirements are not practical for roadside stands, either because the cost is prohibitive or local zoning ordinances forbid it.

Jones' bill would allow farmers to sell salad dressings, olive oil, dried fruit, jam, salsas, pickles, nuts, dried fruit, canned fruit and other so-called value-added products that don't require refrigeration as long as they're prepared in kitchens that meet health standards. The law would also allow the sale of bottled water and soft drinks at roadside stands, including California's many "you-pick" orchards.

At a time when healthy diets and the health of the small farmer are dual concerns, Jones' bill makes particular sense.