Small producers to sell dairy & homemade products to open markets (Laiki)

Small producers of dairy, cheese and other products will be allowed to sell in Greece’s farmers’ markets -Laiki -. According an athensnewsagency report a regulation in the bill for the outdoors trade has been submitted by the Ministry of Economy and Development to the Parliament.

The regulation will allow owners (non-breeders) of “small enterprises” producing dairy products to sell their products solely at the farmers’ markets. One provision is that these owners do also own a shop where they sell their dairy products directly to customers.

The regulation follows a joint the joint ministerial decision 3724/162303 / 22.12.2014 of the Ministries of Development and Competitiveness, Rural Development and Food (B3438).

As it looks that the farmers’ markets (laiki) open the range of products that can be offered, consumers will be also able to purchase bulk tsipouro, homemade products such as jams, spoon sweets, traditional pasta, herbs and spices, as wells as sausages and “in general products included in the Economy Ministry bill submitted to the parliament.

The draft seeks to eliminate all “grey zones” that are currently in force and prevent whole society groups that seek a professional way out in times of the crisis from be active in the open markets.

The draft will also introduce a new system of license distribution allowing among others agricultural cooperatives to sell products (up to 10 licenses) and professional farmers to be able to operate in all kinds of markets.

Furthermore, the bill will make new arrangements and rules not only in the field of open markers but also to Sunday, Christmas and Easter markets, fairs and mobile canteens.

The items consumers will be able to find in the open markets are among others:

– eggs sealed with the distinguishing number of the producer

– other agricultural products such as olives, nuts, chestnuts, legumes, packaged olive oil, bottled wine,

– honey standardized

– poultry and rabbits meeting the rules on food safety and hygiene, fresh fishery products from sea, freshwater, aquaculture

– product of distillation of small distilleries (two days). Especially for the sale of bulk tsipouro the Ministry of Economy will proceed to the creation of a Register of Small Distillers, aiming at more effective control.

– flowers, ornamental plants, aromatic and medicinal plants and horticultural soil which has not undergone industrial processing, and propagating material of cultivated plant species such as horticultural plants, fruit seedlings and vine plants

– home made products such as dairy products, jams, spoon sweets, traditional pasta, herbs, spices

– cured meat products produced by breeders if they have been produced in approved establishments, subject to hygienic and safety conditions

– dairy products.

The licensed producers/sellers may also may sell other unprocessed primary products associated with their main production during the disposal of their cultivated products. Examples are wine leaves by wine growers, courgette flowers by zucchini growers, native plants growing in the agricultural holdings of producers.

Also Industrial products like clothes, fake jewelry, footwear, glassware etc will continue to be sold in the open markets, with the exception of electric goods and toys.

I do not know when the draft will be a law, how certain ‘interests groups’ will react to this and will probably push for modifications, I have no idea how the final form of the law will look like, but we could already start preparing our homemade jams and other delicacies for the Christmas(?) market.

PS We finally turn … Europeans and our open markets will offer more products we have been missing all the time. Next step is to allow garage sales 🙂