Sponsors say MECO registration in HB 134 would let Ohioans sell more foods from home with inspection and fees
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Summary
Representatives testified that HB 134 would create Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation (MECO) registration to allow certain perishable foods to be prepared and sold from home kitchens under a $75 initial/$25 renewal registration plus a $50 inspection fee, with sanitation standards and an income limit included in committee negotiations.
Representatives Gross and Humphrey presented sponsor testimony on House Bill 134, which would create a Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation (MECO) registration to expand the types of cottage and perishable foods Ohioans could legally prepare and sell from home kitchens.
Sponsors said the bill would permit sales of certain perishable foods (for example, items that require refrigeration) from properly registered home kitchens, while preserving sanitation standards and inspections. Representative Gross described the bill as building on existing cottage-food exemptions and home-bakery registration rules to provide another regulated option for home-based entrepreneurs.
Under the version described in committee, sponsors said the initial registration fee would be $75, renewal $25, and an additional $50 inspection fee would help defray inspection costs. They also said committee negotiations produced 14 accepted amendments, and that an income limit was included during committee negotiations to define the microenterprise scope.
Senators asked why the Department of Agriculture would administer the program rather than local health departments and whether the registration constituted a license; sponsors said the Department would track registrations but local health departments might perform inspections and collect the inspection fee. They also said the MECO registration is not a traditional license but that registrations can be removed if inspection standards are not met.
