how about requesting a face to face meeting with Biondi, it is easy to just say no in a letter but armed with facts and figures face to face, it is harder to blow you off. just a suggestion

Thanks for all your effort setting this up. I have also sent a few letters out. Maybe we should all show up with a few samples of our work. Maybe they would change their minds after a few pieces of cake!

Well what I'm planning on doing at this point is to write another letter and this time put in MORE supporting evidence from other states and mention that we'd be willing to pay for the initial inspection and that we'd only need subsequent inspections if there's any cause for such.

Hopefully this will be enough. I'm also hoping (since I just e-mailed all my neighbors and friends a few days ago), that by seeing other letters coming in, that might help, as well.

Just finding this now, thanks Grace. No surprise your reply was a no. (grrr...) This would be huge for me.

Okay, so we already had our bad news...........now it's time for some GOOD NEWS!

Today I received an e-mail from Asm. Dave Russo (District 40 - not mine, btw). He attached a draft legislation for my review. I called his office to find out exactly what that was and from what I was told by the nice lady that answered the phone, Cathy, it's exactly what we want - he's interested in our cause and it's a draft of a bill!!

Incredibly, after contacting Stephanie about this, she checked her voice mail only to find out that she had a message from Senator Marcia Karrow's (District 23) office and that they're interested in authoring a bill!!

After Stephanie called the office back, here's what she e-mailed me:

I just talked to Melissa Nickels in Senator Karrows office. Apparently this was previously brought to their attention because of some problems at a very popular organic farmers market in Flemington, our letters renewed their interest!!! They were not aware of Assemblymen Russo but heres my email to them forwarding the bill. Melissa will be calling their office shortly to get together. Im so excited!!!!!

Miraculously, after all of this, I received a notice of a PM from a CC member, Rydzik and, yep, you guessed it..........she was contacted also by a Senator. She's in contact with that office (in my excitement I actually forgot to ask which office).

So, just so you all know, our hard work (phone calls, letters and e-mails) are paying off! If you haven't done any of these things, please do. Now that we have caught the interest of our reps we need to let them know how serious we are about this issue!!

Thanks to everyone for your help. If we continue on this path there's a good chance we can win this fight!!!

I'll let you know as soon as I set up the online petition.

great work Grace and the rest of you, let us know what else we can do to help

Yea!!! I'm doing the happy dance over here! I was so shocked when I checked my msgs this morning. I was so excited over Grace's call that I didn't even think to check my own msgs until after I got over that! I totally freaked after I played that message!

As Grace already mentioned, it makes sense to email your reps again and tell them we have Assembly Russo and Senator Karrow behind us. The more people we get to jump on the bandwagon, the better!

We're on our way!!!!

Okay, here's the link to the online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?NJHBL. Get yourself over there toot sweet to sign it. Then notify your family members. Tell them to sign. Then start looking for anybody else in NJ and tell them to sign; your manicurist, your dentist, your cab driver, your accountant, your mail carrier, your milkman, your garderner, your gardener's wife, your kids' school's crossing guard, your lawyer, your florist, your florist's ex-wife's second cousin, etc. Once you do all that, don't forget to go back and send some more e-mails. We've got their attention now!!

Oh and as for the unknown Senator.....the one that returned Christine's letter, that's Senator Robert Gordon of District 38 (part of Bergen County). So now we have two Senators and an Assemblyman; let's try to get a Full House of Reps! (sorry I'm just very excited right now!!)

On your marks..........get set.............go sign the petition!!!
(Name, e-mail addy, and town and county).

Oh, I just realized I never posted this. Here's the draft that Asm. Russo sent to me:

AN ACT concerning the sale of certain foods and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

  BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

  1. As used in this act:
  Bakery goods means ready-to-eat baked food for which further cooking is not required for food safety, which is classified by regulation of the commissioner as being a not potentially hazardous food to consumers and includes, but is not limited to, bread, rolls, cakes, pies, cookies or pastries.
  Commissioner means the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services.
  Home-baked means that the bakery good was prepared in a kitchen in a private home that is not subject to regulation and inspection by the Department of Health and Senior Services.
  Not potentially hazardous food means a food which does not require time or temperature control for safety to limit pathogenic microorganism growth or toxin formation.
2. A person may sell home-baked bakery goods if the consumer is notified by a clearly visible placard at the point of sale, in a manner prescribed the commissioner, that the bakery goods were prepared in a kitchen that is not subject to regulation and inspection by the Department of Health and Senior Services.

  3. The commissioner, pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), after consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, shall adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this act.

  4. This act shall take effect on the 180th day after enactment, but the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

  This bill permits the sale of home-baked bakery goods if the consumer is notified by a clearly visible placard at the point of sale, in a manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services, that the bakery goods were prepared in a kitchen that is not subject to regulation and inspection by the Department of Health and Senior Services.
  As defined in the bill:
  Bakery goods means ready-to-eat baked food for which further cooking is not required for food safety, which is classified by regulation of the commissioner as being a not potentially hazardous food to consumers and includes, but is not limited to, bread, rolls, cakes, pies, cookies or pastries.
  Home-baked means that the bakery good was prepared in a kitchen in a private home that is not subject to regulation and inspection by the Department of Health and Senior Services and prepared for sale at farmers markets, roadside stands, private houses or at functions.
  Not potentially hazardous food means a food which does not require time or temperature control for safety to limit pathogenic microorganism growth or toxin formation.
  The bill directs the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services to adopt rules and regulations, after consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, to effectuate its purposes.



Permits sale of home-baked goods under certain circumstances.

So I've been really into baking lately and everyone keeps asking me to buy my cupcakes.. Myself I'm scared to sell them since it's not legal. ANYTHING I can do please let me know! I signed the petition just wish I could get a printed out one then fax it.. ?? Many people I know don't have a computer, bummer!
So would this allow us to be able to sell from our own kitchens? What about inspection?

Okay, I just went through my e-address book and sent out e-mails to that list, then I went through my inbox and you know those people that you just speak to once in a blue moon or that answer or inquire about something, but you don't normally add them to your book? .......well I sent all of those people an e-mail (more than I thought!). Then I found the directory for my 25th Year Elementary School Reunion and sent all of my former classmates (that had an e-mail addy listed) an e-mail and then I went to my kids' school's website and sent an e-mail to every teacher (except the nasty one that teaches Spanish to 6th graders) that my kids have or have had since kindergarten and sent all of them e-mails, too!

Yes, I'm very proud of myself. All these people now have a link to our petition!

The rep part confuses me? Who do I write? Just mine? Would this legalize it for the NJ as a whole or just a certain area?

I just signed the petition and sent it to the people I know. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do and thank you Grace for starting this.

it's Statewide.

OMG! So excited!! signed the petition, sent my emails and also asked on facebook for NJ people to sign the petition. Oh please, oh please let this go thru!

Holy schmoly! I just got an email from Senator Karrow that she is working on it. Of course I knew this from a post here, but am happy to hear from her nonetheless.

Just an updat: I got a phone call this morning from Asm. Dave Russo's office. I spoke with a very sweet woman named Bridget Kelly and she asked for the others that are interested in this bill as well (she received word that I had called yesterday), so I gave her the names of Senators Karrow and Gordon and she seemed somewhat impressed by the fact that they were senators. She also mentioned that there was something about cooking from home kitchens this morning on Good Morning, America. Did anybody see that? So I believe this is a timely topic from their point of view.

Also, just wanted to let you all know that we're up to 58 signatures on the petition!! Keep up the GREAT Work!!

This morning I managed to scrounge up a few more names in which to send e-mails to (I think I'm done now!). lol

But I decided to do something else as a way of getting more signatures for the petition- I printed up more of my 'calling cards' (these include my name, no., e-mail addy and the fact that I'm in three cake clubs), but this time I printed on the back too. They say:

Please Support Our Efforts
Help Us to Legalize Home Bakeries
in the State of New Jersey

Please sign our online petition at:
http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?NJHBL

I handed these out while my daughter was in her ballet class. I wound up giving out 12 cards to the other moms and those women walking out of another class in the next studio!!!

Don't be afraid to print up flyers and post them on bulletin boards, facebook, Craig's List, etc. Let's get as many signatures as possible!!

There are 199 signatures!!!!

GREAT JOB, PEOPLE!! WE HAVE OVER 215 SIGNATURES NOW IN LESS THAN 48 HOURS!!

KEEP SPREADING THE WORD!

I've printed up tear-off flyers that I'm going to post today at different places in my neighborhood and hopefully at a couple of other places. Let's try to get the number of signatures to 1,000 by the end of the week!

I sent the petition link to all my friends and co-workers to sign. Since they all eat my cakes I know they'll take a minute to sign it

Sorry....moved to Virginia

Just FYI:

Stephanie has started a profile for us on Facebook. Look for NJ Cottage Food Law - Home Bakers Law and join us!

Thanks, Stephanie!

I can't find it on Facebook. Looks like you can only search by e-mail or friends name not a subject. Am I missing something?

I can't find it on Facebook. Looks like you can only search by e-mail or friends name not a subject. Am I missing something?

I am SO excited for you guys! I wonder if it would be worth it to try this in Cali? The laws here are ridiculous! Good luck with this!! I can't sign the petition and have no friends in your area but I am praying that this works out!!!!

I am SO excited for you guys! I wonder if it would be worth it to try this in Cali? The laws here are ridiculous! Good luck with this!! I can't sign the petition and have no friends in your area but I am praying that this works out!!!!