Santa Cruz Food Not Bombs leaders vow to oppose new state charitable feeding law

SANTA CRUZ >> Unpermitted charity food efforts statewide will soon be required to register with and be overseen by local law enforcement agencies, per a bill signed into law this week.

Affected groups such as vegan meal-serving Food Not Bombs and its approximately 50 chapters across California, including a branch in Santa Cruz, have taken issue with Assemblywoman Monique Limón’s Assembly Bill 2178, legislation that supporters say is designed to increase health safety protections and provide a clearer regulatory process.

In Santa Cruz and beyond, groups such as Food Not Bombs have faced public criticism for their efforts. In March 2017, the U.S. Postal Service erected a chain link fence around its downtown Santa Cruz post office to limit the property’s use by homeless people. Food Not Bombs has been serving its twice-weekly meals adjacent to the post office since 2011. Community member Janet Fardette, leader of the former river levee cleanup group the Leveelies, gathered signatures in an online petition aimed at shuttering the outdoor food distribution. Police Chief Andy Mills dubbed the post office “a homeless camp and ground zero for the Hepatitis A outbreak” in an October Sentinel op-ed.

Organizers responded in October, refuting accusations that they were unsafely handling food or drawing rats to downtown.

Santa Cruz Food Not Bombs leader Keith McHenry, who also was an cofounder of the now-global Food Not Bombs movement, has pledged to continue its effort and not seek the required permit, once the law goes into effect Jan. 1. The organization’s policy not to seek or accept permits dates back to 1992, because “sharing free food is always an unregulated gift of compassion.” A gathering for the disparate Food Not Bombs groups is scheduled for Nov. 10-12 in Oakland, when the new law will be among items discussed.

“I would doubt that after our next meeting we’re going to reverse the policy, unless some crazy fluke happened,” McHenry said of the policy not to seek permits. “Now, all these chapters across the state are going to have these fights.”

SETTING RULES

The so-called limited service charitable feeding operation bill expands the existing California Retail Food Code food facilities laws — traditionally applying only to commercial ventures — to include charitable food-serving groups. The charitable groups will need to limit meals served to those prepared in a commercial kitchen or to food considered non-hazardous and pre-packaged or raw foods, under the law.

Currently, charitable feeding operations are restricted to serving food three days in 90 days, or they are required to register as a food facility and comply with all regulations. The new bill takes away the three days per three months limit. Groups would be limited to serving food prepared in a commercial kitchen or whole, uncut produce and prepackaged, nonhazardous foods in its original packaging.

McHenry said Santa Cruz is one of the few charitable food serving groups in the state already using a commercial kitchen.

“I’m assuming that everybody’s got good will, that they don’t want to homeless people to get ill,” McHenry said. “We don’t have the money to be buying this pre-packaged food every week. Homeless people don’t want just a bunch of raw vegetables. It doesn’t help them — they don’t have a kitchen.”

Santa Cruz County Health Officer and Environmental Health Director Dr. Arnold Leff has told the Sentinel in the past that he would like to see Food Not Bombs acquire food safety operational permits, but that he could not enforce the request due to freedom of speech protections. Leff was not available Friday to comment on the latest developments. Santa Cruz County officials backed the bill, citing an opportunity to ensure groups such as food kitchens and pantries protect public health, enhance safety and safeguard the environment.

RIPPLE EFFECT

McHenry said he believes the law’s origins come from citizen complaints against outdoor charitable feeding programs by people upset by gatherings of homeless people, rather than due to larger health-related concerns. McHenry said Food Not Bombs would not face the same scrutiny, were it to move its meals indoors. The activist group’s efforts to deliver political messages to the public such as the plight of the homeless, would be weakened, however, he said. McHenry said he also worried that groups that obtain access to commercial kitchens will later be forced out as public pressure mounts against commercial kitchen owners, as he said happened in Santa Monica this summer.

Local law enforcement agencies also will be able to set cost-recovery fees for enforcement of the new provisions.

While the law provides civil liability immunity to nonprofit charitable organizations or food banks for unintentionally causing injury or death due to the food, it also creates an avenue for law enforcement to take action against groups not complying with state laws. Santa Cruz Police Department representatives were not available for comment Friday.