Juneau Economic Development Council

Juneau Local Food Festival

The Juneau Local Food Festival was held for its fourth year in a row on Saturday, August 27, 2011 at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center. The event was free to the public and featured vendors selling locally grown produce, seafood, fresh baked goods containing local ingredients, indigenous plant products, locally produced artisan food, composting supplies, items related to food growing, and much more.

The Food Festival again included its highly rated workshops and an "Ask the Expert" corner, where local gardeners were available to answer questions. The schedule included speakers on topics such as Growing Organic Fruits and Veggies in Southeast Alaska, Raising Chickens, Defeating Invasive Weeds, Fish Filleting and Preserving, Growing Cruciforms, and Building a Root Cellar.

Frequently Asked Questions

(Update: July 2011)

Local Food Festival Information

Q: What can I sell at the Juneau Local Food Festival?
A: The following is our list of approved products:

  • Seafood.
  • Locally produced artisan foods.
  • Vegetables, sprouts or herbs grown by the vendor.
  • Fruits, nuts or berries grown by the vendor.
  • Vegetable or berry plants grown by the vendor.
  • Cut flowers or flowering plants grown by the vendor.
  • Fresh eggs produced by the vendor’s poultry.
  • Fresh baked goods containing local ingredients. Goods must be pre-packaged and must be labeled with ingredients. (No potentially hazardous food such as any custard, whipped cream, meringue, or other cream filled baked goods is permitted.)
  • Homemade jams, jellies, honey, fruit syrup, herb vinegar, dried herbs or dried tea leaves, by the individual who prepared the food.
  • Indigenous plant products crafted by the vendor, such as soap, garlic braids, salves, wreaths.
  • Wild, raw mushrooms, identified and with a sign saying they are wild and have not been inspected.
  • Composting supplies.
  • Items related to food growing, gathering, preparing or serving.
  • Other products that may be approved by the market manager. Products that you are repackaging and distributing under your own label or another, but not producing locally, will be decided on a case-by-case basis.

Q: What is an information-only table?
A: If a non-profit organization wishes to provide information related to gardening, food growing, gathering or preparation only, the table fee is waived. However, if sales are made at the table, the non-profit must pay the table fee. Commercial enterprises cannot have the table fee waived.

Q: What is the registration fee?
A: Any individual, business or non-profit organization who would like to sell to the public must pay a table fee of $30 for each indoor sales table, up to a maximum of three tables, or $15 for an outdoor table. Non-profit organizations that are providing information only may have one table at no charge. Registration is online at JEDC.org for both sales and information tables. Space is limited and tables will be reserved only when registration is complete. Registration is not complete until payment is received.

License and Tax Information

Q: Do I need a business license to sell at the Food Festival?
A: The market does not require proof of a business license; however, any individual engaged in business activity in Alaska must have a business license. Business activity includes both nonprofit and for profit operations. Registering as a business is also a way to show that agriculture and artisan food businesses are contributors to the economy of Southeast.

Q: How much does a business license cost?
A: Business License fees are $50 per year and may be purchased for 1 or 2 years. (You may be qualified for a discounted Business License fee of $25.00 per year, if you are applying for or are currently registered as a Sole Proprietor and you are 65 years or older or will turn 65 during the licensing period to which you are applying, and you are willing to provide your date of birth.) All business licenses expire on December 31st regardless of the date of purchase. The expiring year depends on your choice of an annual (1 year) or biennial (2 year) license.

Q: How do I obtain a business license?
A: To purchase a business license you can fill out the form and pay online at the following link: https://www.commerce.state.ak.us/CBP/BusinessLicensing/New.aspx

Q: Am I required to collect CBJ sales tax?
A: Yes, because you are renting a space at the Local Food Festival to make sales to the public, you are required to collect sales tax at the rate of 5% on the sales of all goods at the time of purchase.

Q: How do I remit CBJ sales tax?
A: To remit sales tax to the CBJ finance department, you must follow these three steps:

  1. Before making sales, register with the CBJ Finance Department, Sales Tax Office. To do this, print, fill out and send in the form found at http://www.juneau.org/financeftp/documents/businessregistration.pdf
  2. For any sales tax collected in April, May or June, fill out a second quarter sales tax return form and send it in by July 31. For any sales tax collected in July, August or September fill out a third quarter sales tax return and send it in by October 31. To do this, print, fill out and send in the form found at http://www.juneau.org/finance/forms/Sales_Tax_Forms_2008/return_5_percent.pdf
  3. When filing your last sales tax return form, close out your account with CBJ by filling in line 13.B. of the return.

Q: If I am a vendor from out of town do I have to collect and remit sales tax in Juneau?
A: Yes, please follow the steps listed above under “Q: How do I remit CBJ sales tax?”

Q: Where can I find more information on the Juneau city sales tax?
A: Call the CBJ sales tax office at 586-5265 or go on-line to http://www.juneau.org/financeftp/salestx.php#responsiblities

DEC Permit Information

Q: Do I need a food processing permit for my food items at the Festival?
A: Only sales of the following do not require a food processing permit from DEC’s Food Safety and Sanitation program (FSS):

  1. Packaging and sale of raw, whole, vegetables and fruit that are offered in their natural state. The produce can be rinsed and the greens and roots cut off. Should the produce be cut, peeled or made into some other food or be a part of another food for sale, you must get a processing permit.
  2. Packaging and sale of plant products that are in their raw or natural state.
  3. Packaging and sale of homemade jams, jellies, syrup, herb vinegar, dried herbs or dried tea leaves – if sold by the individual who prepared the food.
  4. Fresh, whole eggs – only one carton at a time should be left out for display. Other cartons should be kept cold.
  5. Wild, edible mushrooms - as long as there is a sign present giving their common name, and including the statement “Wild mushrooms; not an inspected product.” Any processing such as cutting, drying, or packaging needs to be done in a permitted, approved facility.

Q: What is a food processing permit?
A: Processing permits are needed for food producers that make raw foods into another food product for sale to the public. They may use a variety of methods to produce the finished product including butchering, cooking, baking, as well as curing, smoking and canning low acid foods (thermally processing) or vacuum packaging.

Q: What requires a food processing permit at the Festival?
A: Activities that DO require a permit from the FSS Program include:

  1. Processing and altering fruits or vegetables, with or without washing or other treatment, prior to being packaged for use by the consumer. Examples of processing/altering include peeling, slicing, chopping, shredding, coring, or trimming. These products are generally referred to as “fresh-cut” and include shucked peas, peeled carrots, shredded lettuce and cabbage, and broccoli and cauliflower florets.
  2. Glazing or Roasting of shelled nuts at an event for sale directly to the consumer is an exempt activity. Nuts processed in bulk and brought to the event would need a processing permit.
  3. For more items that require a permit see: http://juneauartistmarket.wikispaces.com/file/view/Do+I+need+a+food+service+permit

Q: What are the requirements for a home baker?
A: Home Bakers are people who wish to bake products at an unapproved or unpermitted kitchen and sell those products directly to the public. You do not need a food processing permit to prepare non-hazardous (any food that does not have to be temperature controlled to be safe) baked goods such as cookies, fruit pies, breads, muffins, etc. However, you may only fix enough for one day’s market, and you may not prepare any custard or cream-filled baked goods. If you want to fix other foods or make potentially hazardous foods, such as custard pies, you will need to get a food processing permit and work out of an approved kitchen.
In order to sell at the Festival, each Home Baker must:

  1. File a Home Bakers Application and complete an inventory of the food items you prepared weekly, to be kept on file at the JACC. Forms are available at: http://juneauartistmarket.wikispaces.com/Sunday+Market
  2. Have a State of Alaska Food Worker Card. Vendors must set up a time with DEC to take this test. Cost for the test is $10.00, and it is available online: http://alaska.state.gegov.com/foodworker/
  3. Individually wrap all products to protect them from possible contamination during transportation, storage or display.
  4. Use tongs or gloves to service items to the public - no bare hand contact is allowed.
  5. In order for people with food allergies to know what is in your baked goods and to be able to trace the products to the individual home baker in case of problems, each individually wrapped product must contain a label with the following information:
    • The common name of the product
    • List of ingredients (in order of predominance-most to least)
    • Name of home baker and their community with zip code

Q: Can I put out samples of the food I am selling?
A: Low hazard foods such as dips made from mixes with sour cream or mayonnaise, salsas, jerky, mustards, breads, crackers, pretzels, nuts, can be served but under certain conditions. If you have a processing permit, you do not have to also have a temporary food service permit if the samples are provided at a fair, bazaar or Farmer’s Market. The samples must be precooked, ready to eat and require only dispensing. You must also have handwashing facilities and if the samples are not packaged, you must dispense the samples using gloves or other protective means to keep out any contamination. Potentially hazardous foods must be kept at 41°F or colder.

Q: Do I need a Temporary Food Service permit?
A: A temporary food service is food provided for consumption by the public at an event that is advertised to the general public with flyers, banners, newspaper articles or by other means. If you are operating a temporary food service, then you must get a temporary food service permit from DEC. Food cooked in individual homes may not be served at these kinds of events. All food must be prepared in a kitchen that is permitted by the department or purchased from a source that is permitted by the department.

Q: If I need a Temporary Food Service Permit, where can I get more information on fees and payments?
A: http://dec.alaska.gov/eh/fss/images/TFS_Fees-fullsheet.pdf

Q: Where can I get more information about DEC regulations, permits and waivers?
A: Contact: Jason Wiard
Alaska Dept. Environmental Conservation
410 Willoughby Ave, Suite 303
Juneau, AK 99801-1795
Phone: (907) 465-5163
Email: jason.wiard@alaska.gov