Apply for PSR Qualified Exempt Status NOW!
By Carol Allen
Accurately determining Produce Safety Rule qualified exempt status depends on the USDA’s food sales values. These values set the upper and lower limits for a producer to determine where their operation falls under the Produce Safety Rule. Typically, these values increase every year due to inflation and usually, those revised figures are published every April. This year the figures were published about a month ago. The MDA Food Quality Assurance Program staff asked growers to hold their applications until the new values were published. NOW is the time to apply for qualified exempt status.
How is your operation impacted by the Produce Safety Rule? If your farm grows, harvests, packs, or holds covered produce* and your annually sales value (three year rolling average) was greater than $33,297, then the Produce Safety Rule applies to you.
Qualified Exempt (QE) status is for growers who sell between $33,297 and $665,947 in food annually (adjusted for inflation, average of 2022, 2023, & 2024 food sales). For this exemption, food is defined as, “articles used for food and drink for man or other animals.” This list would include produce, dairy, eggs, meat, honey, processed or homemade foods such as jams, pickled items, sauces, baked goods, as well, as beverages, foods and drinks purchased for resale, sales of live food animals, and animal feed such as pet milk, hay, silage, grain, and similar products. The next stipulation is that those sales go to qualified end users. Qualified end users include: farm stands, farmer’s markets, CSAs, restaurants and or retailers in Maryland or not further than 275 miles from the farm. You may still qualify if some of your annual produce sales go to non-qualified end users such as; wholesale distributers, brokers, produce auctions, and any sales greater than 275 miles from the farm. Those sales will not disqualify a producer from qualified exempt status, provided the majority of sales (greater than 51%), are made to qualified end users as described above.
MDA staff developed the following decision tree to help growers decide if they fall under the Produce Safety Rule and if they are eligible for qualified exempt status.
A producer is not automatically awarded this status, but MUST APPLY for it. If a supposed qualified exempt producer does not apply for QE status, they will have to comply to all parts of the Produce Safety Rule. A producer may elect to comply fully to the PSR as QE status is an option. Applications for Qualified Exempt status are best made in the early spring and are sent to the Food Quality Assurance Program at Maryland Department of Agriculture. Forms can be found here: https://mda.maryland.gov/foodfeedquality/Documents/MDA_DOC_005%20PSR%20Qualified%20Exemption%20Form_2025.pdf. The first page is a worksheet that you retain for your records.
If Qualified Exempt status allows a producer to bypass most of the Produce Safety Rule regulations, what is required? Qualified Exempt producers must have the farm name and location on all packages of their produce or so indicated where the produce is sold.
QE status requires an annual application and can be withdrawn in the event of an active investigation of an outbreak of foodborne illness that is linked to the farm or there are certain public safety concerns.
Maryland farmers are urged to REGISTER their farm here: https://mda.maryland.gov/foodfeedquality/Documents/How%20to%20Register%20a%20Produce%20Farm%20rev.pdf. Registration is a requirement of the Produce Safety Rule!
Do you need help with this or any other aspect of Produce Safety Rule compliance? Contact, Carol Allen, callen12@umd.edu.