8 K-State Research and Extension — Foods Sold Directly to Consumers in Kansas: Regulations and Food Safety Best Practices
In addition to food safety, what other regulatory
requirements do I need to follow to sell at a farmers
market?
• Sales tax: Every vendor must obtain a Retail Sales Tax
certicate; vendors should le their tax liability individually.
More information is available from the Kansas Department
of Revenue (https://www.ksrevenue.gov/bustaxtypessales.html)
or by calling 785-368-8222.
• Filing as a business entity: e Oce of the Secretary of
State (SOS) has the appropriate forms available online
2
or
by contacting 785-296-4564. Sole proprietorships do NOT
le with the SOS. General partnerships may le if desired,
but it is not required
3
.
• Registration of farmers market or roadside stand: Farmers
markets (as a whole, rather than individual vendors) and
roadside stands are encouraged to register in the Central
Registry of Kansas Farmers Markets
4
. Registration is
voluntary, but will provide advertising and limited liability
coverage for farmers markets and roadside stands.
• Licensing of particular products: More information on
the licensing requirements for growing, producing and
selling specic types of food products is available in KDA’s
Licensing Guides
5
. Topics of particular interest to farmers
market vendors include: food processor, food wholesaler
and distributor, home kitchen for retail food sales, meat or
poultry processing facility, mobile food unit, dairy processing
facility, and poultry farm and egg sales.
• Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP):
Farmers, farmers markets, and roadside stands are eligible to
accept SFMNP coupons from customers. More information
on how to accept and redeem SFMNP coupons is available
from https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/1041/Kansas-Senior-Farmers-
Market-Nutrition-P.
• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP):
Farmers markets are eligible to accept SNAP benets from
customers. Visit the USDA website
6
for more information
on accepting and redeeming SNAP benets from customers.
• Scale testing: Farmers market vendors using a scale to sell
products by weight must have a licensed service company
7
test their scales once annually. More information is available
from the KDA Weights and Measures website
8
or by calling
785-564-6700.
What are the labeling requirements for packaged food
products?
9
1. Common name of the product (e.g. apple pie).
2 Forms available from: www.kssos.org/forms/forms_results.aspx?division=BS
3 More information available from: hps://sos.ks.gov/business/business.html
4 Application and more information available from: www.agriculture.ks.gov/docs/default-
source/ag-markeng/central-registraon-of-kansas-farmers%27-markets.pdf?sfvrsn=0
5 Licensing guides are available from:
hps://agriculture.ks.gov/kda-services/licensing-guides
6 USDA SNAP website: hps://snaped.fns.usda.gov/nutrion-educaon/nutrion-
educaon-materials/farmers-markets
7 List of licensed scale service companies available from:
hp://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/weight-measures/scales
8 KDA Weights and Measures website:
hp://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/weight-measures
9 More information on food labeling is available from a KSU Extension Food Safety
publication, Food Labeling for Kansas Food Producers and Processors: https://bookstore.
ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF3385.pdf; or by contacting KDA Food Safety and Lodging (785-
2. Name and physical address of the person that made or is
selling the product.
3. Product ingredients listed in descending order of
predominance. is is particularly important for customers
that have food allergies.
4. Quantity (net weight, volume, or count, depending on
product).
Meat products have additional labeling requirements, which
are included in the Selling Meat, Eggs and Dairy Products section.
If producers would like to label their product as “organic,”
they must meet the USDA organic certication requirements.
More information on obtaining such certication, including an
Organic Cost Share Program for Kansas farmers, is available
from: http://agriculture.ks.gov/kda-services/grants-and-cost-share-
programs/organic-cost-share-program. If products are labeled as
certied organic, proof of that certication must be on le with
the relevant state oce regulating the labeling of that product.
How are all these regulations enforced?
e Kansas Department of Agriculture Food Safety and
Lodging Program local inspectors and KDA meat and poultry
compliance ocers conduct random inspections of vendors at
farmers markets to check for food safety.
Farmers market managers, K-State Research and Extension
personnel, and other related individuals should only provide
information on regulations and could make suggestions on
how vendors can comply with regulations. However, they are
not regulators or enforcers of government regulations. Farmers
market managers should enforce any requirements specic to
their market.
General Food Safety Practices, Selling Fresh
Produce, Samples and Demos
All practices listed in the sections below which are REQUIRED by
state regulations are listed in bold and italics. All other practices listed
are strongly recommended for food safety.
Retail food sales (including at farmers markets) in Kansas
are regulated by the Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA).
However, vendors should always check with the market where they
are selling, as their requirements may be more stringent than state
governmental regulations.
General steps to food safety for all farmers market
vendors
• Transport and store foods at proper temperatures to prevent
rapid bacterial growth
• Vendors selling perishable foods must have a suitable
thermometer with them at the market.
• Hot prepared foods must be held at 135°F or higher.
• Foods to be sold at room temperature (whole produce,
canned goods, baked goods) should be kept cooler than
80°F as much as possible.
• Cold perishable foods (such as potato salad or most dairy
products) must be 41°F or less.
• Frozen foods such as frozen meats and ice cream must be