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1. Does a Certified Farmers' Market need a health permit?

Yes. CFMs are defined in The California Code as a food facility and therefore are required to have a valid health permit, including those CFMs where only certified agricultural products are sold.

2. Do I need a separate Event Coordinator permit to have temporary food facilities adjacent to my CFM?

Yes. Cal Code requires temporary food facilities to be organized and controlled by an event coordinator and also requires a separate health permit for the event coordinator.

3. What products can be sold at a CFM?

Only agricultural products (certified and non-certifiable) may be sold within a CFM. Please visit the California Conference of Directors Environmental Health Guidelines website or the Placer County Agricultural Commissioner for the definitions of certified vs. non-certified. Examples of certified include:

• Flowers
• Fresh fruits
• Honey
• Nursery stock
• Nuts
• Shell eggs
• Vegetables

Examples of non-certified include processed products from certified agricultural products such as fruit and vegetable juices, shelled nuts, jams and jellies, and wine. Other examples include catfish, trout, and oysters from controlled aquaculture operations, livestock and livestock products, and poultry and poultry products.

4. What steps must I take to put on a CFM?

Please follow these two steps to put on a CFM:

• Contact the Agricultural Commissioner and Sealer of Weights and Measures. Comply with all of their requirements and regulations.
• Contact this office and speak to your District Specialist. The Environmental Health Department is the local health agency that will perform routine inspection on your market. Fill out and submit back our CFM Application (PDF) along with appropriate fees (PDF). Each market location will be charged a one time fee for the entire season. The CFM application will ask for market dates, times, all participating farmers (both certified and non-certified), and market coordinator name and contact information.

If a temporary food facility event is to operate adjacent to the CFM, the event must apply for it’s own, separate permit to operate. Fees for temporary events are based on the number of food vendors participating in the event.