EXECUTIVE ORDER /LEGISLATIVE UPDATES:
Re-Opening Board
The Massachusetts Rural Policy Advisory Commission (RPAC) has representation on the Governor’s new Re-Opening Board. If your community has suggestions/concerns, please send them to Linda Dunlavy, Chair of the RPAC, to pass on.
Facial Covering Order
Effective Wednesday, May 6, 2020, Governor Baker issued an Order requiring face masks or cloth face coverings in public places where social distancing is not possible. This applies to both indoor and outdoor spaces. Exceptions include children under the age of 2 and those unable to wear a mask or face covering due to a medical condition. Full details are outlined in the May 1 Order and at mass.gov/coveryourface. Concerned that you may not have a face mask? You don’t need one! Watch a video describing all the alternatives here.
New Procedures for Farmers Markets
Just in time for the traditional May 1 start of Farmers Market season in our region, the Departments of Public Health and Agricultural Resources released new orders and guidance for Farmers Markets, Farm Stands, and CSAs. They lay out the necessary physical distancing and hygiene practices required at each. Farm stands are encouraged to pre-bag their products and limit cash transactions, but the changes for Farmers Markets are extensive. Note that unlike many food borne viruses, Coronavirus causes respiratory illness. Food borne exposure to this virus is not known to be a route of transmission, so the main concern in agricultural sales is the behavior of the people involved. Read more here:
· DPH emergency order for farmers markets, farm stands, and Community
Supported Agriculture (CSA)
· MDAR guidance on farmers markets, farm stands, and CSAs
· MDAR resource page for agriculture
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