HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.) DEP Secretary David E. Hess called for updating the state’s water plan and identifying critical water-planning areas dur ing visits to the Hourglass Foun dation’s Water Forum held May 16 in Lancaster and the Lehigh Valley Water Suppliers’ annual Water Issues Luncheon May 10 in Bath. “Gov. Schweiker has pro claimed May 5-11 Safe Drinking Water Week in Pennsylvania to bring greater awareness to our valuable water resources,” Hess said. “The economic and envi ronmental future of our com monwealth depends on a safe and plentiful supply of water. “Drinking water doesn’t sim ply come from your faucet. It comes from a well, a stream or a Marketers May Be Exempt From License PIKETON, Ohio Ohio farm ers who sell their products at larmer’s markets, farm product auctions, and similar direct mar keting outlets may be exempt from food license registration and inspection if they meet certain re quirements. An amendment in Ohio’s Un iform Food Safety Code, Senate Bill 136 passed by the Ohio Gen eral Assembly last fall, allows for retail food establishment license and inspection exemptions from direct agricultural marketing fa cilities based upon the types of foods being sold. John Ellerman, an Ohio State University Extension agricultural marketing specialist, said the change in the law was designed to make it easier and less expen sive for smaller farmers to main tain their business. “When the Uniform Food Safety Code was originally passed, all direct food marketers had to have a retail food license that was obtained from the local health department. Prices ranged anywhere from $lOO to $500,” said Ellerman, who works at Ohio State’s South Centers in Piketon, Ohio. “This created a public outcry because for the small-scale producer selling a couple hundred dollars of vege tables a year, he simply can’t af ford that cost.” According to the change in the law, farmers who sell at a farm er's market can claim exemption if they only sell one or more of the following: • Commercially pre-packaged food that is not potentially haz ardous, on the condition that the food is contained in displays on the premises where business is conducted and the total space of the display is less than or equal to 100 cubic feet. • Fresh unprocessed fruits or vegetables. * Maple syrup, sorghum or honey, • Products from a food production oper ation and if they are properly labeled. La- beling requirements include name and ad- dress of the operation; name of the food prod uct; ingredients; net weight or net volume; and a statement in 10-point type that the product is home pro- duced. Farmers who sell at farm auctions can claim exemption if one or more of the follow- ing items are offered for sale: • Eggs sold to the final consumer if ob- tained from an exempt State Water Plan Update Urged During Visits reservoir. Clean and plentiful water depends on each of us and on the public and private water system operators who work hard to make sure we have a safe sup ply to drink.” Hess urged the state Legisla ture to pass the Water Resources Conservation and Protection Act to update the state’s water plan and to identify critical water planning areas. Throughout April and May of last year, DEP conducted 15 water forums across the state to gain input from more than 1,700 citizens about their water-re source needs. That input is the basis of Gov. Schweiker’s pro posed water-resources legislative initiative, which would provide a historic opportunity to: • Update the state water plan. • Identify Critical Water farm (500 or fewer hens). • Poultry sold to the final con sumer if obtained from an exempt farm (1,000 or fewer chickens raised, processed and sold per year). • Non-amendable meats sold to the final consumer, such as rabbit, bison, ostrich or emu. • Fresh unprocessed fruits or vegetables. • Maple syrup, sorghum or honey. • Products from a cottage food production operation and if they are properly labeled. Label ing requirements include name and address of the operation; name of the food product; ingre dients; net weight or net volume; and a statement in 10-point type that the product is home pro duced. A farm market may claim exemption if one or more of the following items are offered for sale: • Commercially pre-packaged food that is not potentially haz ardous, on the condition that the food is contained in displays on the premises where business is conducted and the total space of the display is less than or equal to 100 cubic feet. • Fresh unprocessed fruits or vegetables. • Maple syrup, sorghum or honey. • Products from a cottage food production operation and if they are properly labeled. Label ing requirements include name and address of the operation; name of the food product; ingre dients; net weight or net volume; and a statement in 10-point type that the product is home pro duced. • Cider and other juices man ufactured on-site. • Eggs sold to the final con sumer if obtained from an exempt farm (500 or fewer hens). • Poultry sold to the final con sumer if obtained from an exempt farm (1,000 or fewer cottage NOTICE EXTENDED PARTS DEPARTMENT STORE HOURS EFFECTIVE MONDAY, APRIL 1, 2002 To Better Serve You During The Busy Planting Season APRIL - MAY - JUNE Mon., Tiies., Thurs. & Fri. 7am-Bpm Wed. 7am-6pm; Sat. 7am-3pm BINKLEMurst 133 “ s ::r Rd • 00/10 TMfi / Lititz, PA 17543-0395 wT W BllllS-(717)626-4705 aFannPl , n Fax 717-626-0996 1 -800-414-4705 S , Planning Areas. • Promote voluntary water conservation. • Improve stormwater man agement and establish private water-well standards. After a week of special events including a water festival called Hydro Mania, the Lehigh Valley Water Suppliers (LVWS) wrap ped up the week with their annu al Water Issues Forum. The lun cheon has been a tradition of the non-profit group for more than a decade as the 17 member utilities gather to celebrate National Drinking Water Awareness Week. LVWS President Doug Bowen, manager of Whitehall Township Authority, said the organization’s activities during this week have been focused on promoting water awareness among the Lehigh chickens raised, processed and sold per year). • Non-amendable meats sold to the final consumer, such as rabbit, bison, ostrich or emu, on the condition that the person of fering to sell the meat raises and processes the animals. Ellerman said that home bakers are also exempt from ob taining a license if they are not producing any potentially haz ardous baked goods. “Things like bread are fine, but if someone wants to bake and sell something like a creme pie, a home bakers license is required,” he said. “One item that is still controversial is marketing meat and eggs at farmer’s markets. You can sell them directly to the final con sumer at product auctions and farm markets, but not at farmer’s markets without a mobile retail food license. The meat has to be state or USDA-inspected when sold with a mobile retail food li cense.” Ellerman said that farm mar kets, farmers’ markets, and farm product auctions seeking exemp tion must register with the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Forms or further information is available at http:// www.ohiofruit.org or http:// www.ohiovegetables.org by fol lowing links on “Growers News” and “Legislative and Regulatory Issues.” Information may also be obtained from the Ohio Depart ment of Agriculture’s website at http://www.state.oh.us/agr/ and following links on “Food Safety.” More information is available regarding cottage food produc tion, maple syrup and ___ sorghum processing, bee keeping and selling honey, mobile retail food license labeling, additional miscel laneous exemptions, and other definitions relative to the Uniform Food Safety Code and Senate Bill 136 at the above web sites. Spe- Valley’s youth. “We completed Hydro Mania, our second annual water festival, where approximately 1,000 stu dents teamed about the impor tance of source water protec tion,” Bowen said. As part of Safe Drinking Water Week, DEP recognized 1,567 Pennsylvania water-supply systems that have complied with all federal and state drinking water-quality standards and monitoring requirements during 2001. “We want to recognize the ex traordinary record of compliance for water suppliers who have met all of their monitoring and treat ment requirements during the year,” Hess said. “These sup pliers have produced water for public consumption that com plies with and often exceeds ad- Registration cific questions should be ad dressed to the ODA, Division of Food Safety at (614) 728-6250. “Farmers should contact their local health department to apply for a mobile retail food establish ment license and they can use the license anywhere in the state,” said Ellerman. “My recommendation is that sellers at fanner’s markets, road side markets and produce auc tions be assertive in working with their local health departments. It has been my experience that most health department personnel working with food safety issues will work with producers to help them meet food safety require ments,” said Ellerman. “It’s im portant for a farmer to ask for help. By doing so they can devel op a win-win situation.” Ellerman also encourages pro ducers to involve their local Ex tension agent in the process. “There are obstacles in farmers getting the knowledge they need to do it right, and that’s where county agents can play a role,” he said. Direct agricultural markets are increasing throughout the USDA, farmer’s markets have increased 63 percent from 1994 to 2000. More than 2,800 farmer’s mar kets operate in the U.S. The ODA lists more that 600 statewide farm markets, roadside markets, produce auctions, and other agricultural markets in its Ohio Farmers Market Directory. Dubaßed COW MATTRESS “The Ultimate In Cow Comfort” The only one of its kind! ■□QkMA Heaviest... Strongest... Driest.. Most Effective... The BEST! 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At the Hourglass Foundation Water Forum In Lancaster, Hess served as the featured speaker on a panel discussion on the topic, “Is Lancaster County Running Out of Water?” Also on the panel were Jeanne Sanntag, chair of the Lancaster County Water Re sources Task Force; Tom Bald rige, president, Lancaster Cham ber of Business and Industry; and Daniel Zimmerman, Warwick Township Manager and chair of the Lancaster County Planning Commission. The panel modera tor was Donald Roseman Jr., president of the Hourglass Foun dation. More than 50 people at tended the forum, including Lan caster County Commissioners Paul Thibault and Ronald Ford. During the forum, Hess urged the state legislature to pass the Water Resources Conservation and Protection Act, which would update the state’s water plan and identify critical water-planning areas. “Last week, I toured nine dif ferent watershed-restoration projects with the Lancaster County Conservation District, and it was obvious the people of Lancaster care deeply about im proving water quality,” Hess said. “We now need to carry that concern one step further and deal with water-quantity issues.” The mission of the Hourglass Foundation is to inform citizens about the issues arising from the growth and development of Lan caster County and provide both public forums and open channels of communication by connecting local people, organizations, com munities and government to dis cuss common issues and to solve growth-related problems. For more information on drinking water or the water sys tems recognized, visit DEP through the PA Power Port at www.state.pa.us, PA Keyword: “drinking water.” To see pictures of the visit, go to DEP’s website and click on “scrapbook.”
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