Posts Tagged ‘producer certificate’

Business Startup Costs

Looking at our taxes was a good way of getting an idea of the entire year’s expenses versus income.  But it might also be helpful to those just getting started to know what our bare bones outlay was, just to get “legal.”

Because we wanted to remain flexible regarding what we would sell, last year we obtained a business license (which required a fictitious business name statement and publishing of an announcement in the paper), registered with the Department of Agriculture to sell eggs, and with the Board of Equalization (which collects sales tax for retail sales; for us, this included any non-food nursery stock we sold).  In addition we needed the Certified Producer’s Certificate and scale certification from the county, and membership in the Mendocino County Farmers Market Association, required to sell at the certified markets here.

 Last year’s (2010) costs of doing business:

$30 - Farmers Market Association membership

$25 – Certified Producer’s certificate and scale sealing at county Ag Department

$15 – Egg Handler’s Registration (plus nominal fee for number of eggs sold)

$40 – Business License (county tax collector)

$130 – Business License (one-time county Planning and Building fee)

$48 – Fictitious Business Name statement

$91 – Classified ad - to publish fictitious business name in local paper

 =$379.00

 This year, we only had to renew the business license, the fictitious business name statement is good for five (or four?) years, and the egg handler’s registration is good until we need to make changes.  So for 2011, it was a lot cheaper:

 $30 - Farmers Market Association membership

$25 – Certified Producer’s certificate and scale sealing at county Ag Department

<$1 – Nominal fee for the number of eggs we sold

$40 – Business License (county tax collector)

 = $96.00

To Bee

Producer’s certificate

It’s all an experiment

Run in With the Farmers Market Police