MO. Department of health... inspection

[D Coates]

I just got a call from the MO. Department of Health.  They found some of my product on the shelves of a local retailer that I supply.  Apparently because I'm a "wholesaler" I fall under their inspections.  I can sell all I want at farmers markets with no inspections.  When I extract all I do is convert my garage with processing equipment.  When I am done I clean everything up, store it off site and convert the garage back into a garage.  I had a deep laundry sink installed for this but does anyone know what other kind of things they are looking for?  I looked it up on the MO. Department of Health but couldn't find anything.  I'm not harvesting for the rest of the year so I've got a year to try to figure out what else I need or if I just get out of the wholesale business.

Does anyone have any experience with their respective state Department of Health and what they require?

[kingbee]

Don't depend on what I tell you but I suspect (or I am afraid) that you will need a deep double or triple stainless steel sink.  A floor drain, a commercial grade hot water heater (180 degree) a separate water, sewer, or waste system, and a different kind (unknown) wall and ceiling covering or paint as well as one or maybe two restrooms and perhaps a shower or an eye wash station. Good luck.  Let us know how it went.

[AllenF]

And walls you can wash down.

[Satch]

MO requires a Honey House to process and bottle your honey if you market your produce through another vendor.  If you just sell roadside or through farmers market, etc. then as long as profits are less than $30,000 then you do not have to be inspected or have a honey house.

Been doing a lot of checking on this for the next couple of years and am going in with another beekeeper to build a honey house to market our wares.

[indypartridge]

MO requires a Honey House to process and bottle your honey if you market your produce through another vendor

Indiana has similar requirements - essentially a honey house has to be equivalent to a commerical kitchen. However, many churches have kitchens that meet the requirements. A donation to the church for using their kitchen is considerably less expensive than building a honey house.

[D Coates]

How do you extract supers in a church kitchen without some lost bees getting loose inside the church?  I can't see how that will end well.

[danno]

Here in Michigan we dont need a full commercial kitchen to whole sale honey.  We do need a restricted Comm kitchen.   A honey house is mostly wash in place so this is what we need.  Hot water,  a sink,  washable floor w/ drains,  covered lighting over work areas, a restroom on the property not required in the honey house,  city water or a sampled well,  sewer or a approved septic and drain field and a check made out to the Mi Dept of Ag for 75.00 

[Satch]

How do you extract supers in a church kitchen without some lost bees getting loose inside the church?  I can't see how that will end well.

Ray Stevens had a song about a Squirrel in church.  Might make a fortune off the Bee's day in church ;)

[D Coates]

Here in Michigan we dont need a full commercial kitchen to whole sale honey.  We do need a restricted Comm kitchen.   A honey house is mostly wash in place so this is what we need.  Hot water,  a sink,  washable floor w/ drains,  covered lighting over work areas, a restroom on the property not required in the honey house,  city water or a sampled well,  sewer or a approved septic and drain field and a check made out to the Mi Dept of Ag for 75.00 

From your discription the only thing I'm missing is a drain in my concrete floor.

[Joe D]

This year I have been real lucky.  A fellow in local bee club let me use his new 12 frame extractor.   And what honey I haven't sold myself to people, my sister-in-law has a beauty shop in Hattiesburg and has sold a case a week in it.  No health dept. involved.



Joe