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• Urbana’s Farmers’ Market adjusts to baked goods ban

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The Champaign Public Health Department (CPHD) recently enforced a rule that would ban the selling of all home-baked goods at the Farmer’s Market. This ruling has been controversial, with conflicting views from concerned customers as well as hard-working vendors. buzz had the opportunity to sit down with Lisa Bralts, market director of Community Development Services for the City of Urbana, to find out more about this issue.

buzz: Can you tell us about the CHPD’s reasoning behind this rule?

Bralts: Several Illinois state statutes point toward persons baking in their homes are not allowed to sell for business purposes because of public health and safety complications. They can only do it through non-profit activities like fundraising. The way this is set up in Illinois is that it can make a law regarding public health, but it is up to the county to enforce the law. Our county, up until very recently, had chosen to look the other way, but now they’re actually choosing to reinterpret the state rules to make it more in line to what they feel the state means by this rule.

buzz: Obviously there are people who are upset about this. What can they do to make a difference?

Bralts: I think a lot of people have been registering their dissatisfaction with this ruling with the local health department. I’m not sure what their process has been for receiving feedback, but I know a lot of people have been contacting them. From what I understand, change is not likely to occur unless something happens at the state level, legislatively, where some legislation would tell the health department to create special rules for Farmers’ Market. It seems to me that the Champaign County has decided that they’re going to become a bit more strict regarding things of this nature. I think people’s voices always make a difference, and many have also contacted the City staff, City Council, the mayor and me. So we’re all aware, and we’re continuing to have conversations with the health department about how we can improve communication in the future.

buzz: What are the bakers currently doing to cope with this situation?

Bralts: I know that some of the bakers are fighting this tooth-and-nail [by] attending meetings and getting together, which I think is fine. My position as the market manager is that the market goes on no matter what, so I’m sad to be losing them. They’re a couple of bakers, however, who will be using other kitchens. They have made arrangements with either restaurants or churches to continue making their baked goods, just not in their home. At least for now, it looks like some of our bakers are trying to access other kitchens in order to continue doing what they’re doing. I’m all in favor of it because the more the merrier, and the more variety of baked goods that we have, the happier the people are.

buzz: What is your personal view on this issue?

Bralts: I am not against regulation per se, but what has inconvenienced my office a great deal is the timing. If we had known a few months ago that the health department was planning on doing this, I could’ve rolled it out to the vendors to give them more time to find alternative kitchens or to figure out what they’re going to do. I am in favor, though, of there being a special permit for people who sell at Farmers’ Market. So while I’m not happy with the way this came down, just because this has been such a huge distraction for me while I’m trying to get the rest of the market put together, but that’s their job, not mine. What I would really like to see is some legislation at the state level that clearly spells out exactly what is allowed at the Farmers’ Market. I understand that they think it’s important in terms of public health, but I just think that in order for Illinois to remain at the vanguard of local food and local producers, they really need to look at some alternative ways to level the playing field a little bit.