Bill > SB58

This bill creates the West Virginia Farm Fresh Dairy Act, which aims to allow the sale and consumption of homemade and farm-fresh raw milk and raw milk products. The key provisions include: 1. Defining terms such as "delivery," "farmers market," "raw milk," and "raw milk products." 2. Establishing the purpose of the Act, which includes permitting the limited purchase and consumption of farm-fresh raw milk and dairy products, expanding the agricultural economy for small dairy farms, and providing informed consumers with access to these products. 3. Exempting raw milk and raw milk product transactions from any licensure, permitting, or certification requirements, while allowing agencies to provide assistance, consultation, or inspection with the producer's consent. 4. Specifying requirements for the transactions, such as being directly between the producer and the informed end consumer, occurring only within West Virginia, and not involving interstate commerce. 5. Outlining best sanitary milking and milk handling practices, including requirements for the milking area, udder and teat cleaning, milk handling, storage, and animal health. 6. Establishing a registration and inspection process for producers who wish to sell raw milk and raw milk products. 7. Detailing the administration, violations, and penalties related to the Act, including corrective measures for first and repeat violations, as well as potential penalties for causing a food-borne illness or interfering with an investigation. 8. Providing sales requirements and standards, such as daily volume limits, labeling, and providing customers with safe handling and use guidelines. The overall purpose of this bill is to facilitate the sale and consumption of homemade and farm-fresh raw milk and raw milk products in West Virginia, while ensuring proper safety and sanitation practices are followed by producers.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

http://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/Bills_history.cfm?input=58&year=2021&sessiontype=RS&btype=bill