Signed into law in April 2021, the Montana Local Food Choice Act (SB199) represents a major change to direct-to-consumer sales for home-kitchen producers, eliminating nearly a century’s worth of incremental expansions on food safety rules/regulations/education. It allows producers to sell specific, not previously allowed, home-made foods directly to the public - without a license, permit, certification, packaging guidelines, labels, or inspection. While SB199 expands the market opportunity, the absence of education resources, regulations, or certifications puts producers at significantly increased likelihood for legal and financial risk.
AERO offered educational workshops with the goal of increasing new/value-added producers’ understanding of current Montana legislation regarding food licensing, registration and inspection (including new changes under SB199) and risk management strategies to minimize legal liability and maximize profitability and longevity for food enterprises.
Specifically, we: 1) created a presentation on SB199 and legal liability risk management practices, offered in 8 statewide workshops (7 in-person, 1 virtual), 2) offered trainings with expert-producers highlighting how they employ legal liability risk management practices, and 3) developed a HACCP assessment tool for home kitchen value-added producers. The trainings showcased producers of raw milk and baked goods.