With anything in life, there are going to be people who oppose you. With this particular topic the majority of people who oppose home bakers are business owners themselves. As you’ve read, they call and alert health departments as “concerned citizens” and for some reason seem to be scared of the competition that home baking might bring along with it. They are also upset because they are either in debt from loans, or because they followed the law and found a commercial kitchen. They think we are taking the easy road.
As with any law out there you will always have people not following it. A change to the current cottage food law to include home bakers would not necessarily impact any change on the illegal bakers. What it will do is allow people to do this legally, which is what the majority are asking for. We are here asking for a law to follow, and wanting to abide by the rules. By allowing home bakers to be included in the current cottage food law, we could be registered, have rules to follow, have oversight and restriction, become legal small business owners, and be able to get insurance to protect our families.
In the case of professional bakers, there is no doubt that we have professionals who have invested a lot of time, money, and effort into their businesses. Those people would be on another playing field than what a home baker does, and what we are asking for with the law change. Professionals would be allowed to make anything. Potentially hazardous AND non-potentially hazardous foods. They can sell not only to consumers, but also with retail storefronts, and wholesale like to hotels and other venues. Professionals have more opportunities and that is what going to that next level as a professional baker gets them.
The home bakers would not be allowed to sell wholesale, only to the consumer, and would have no retail storefront. They would only be able to make a small subset of non-potentially hazardous foods. Home bakers are wanting to be in the game. They are asking to be legal so that they too may have many more opportunities available to them.
Micaela
August 17, 2017 at 8:00 am (8 months ago)Great post!! Gorgeous cookies..love those!!