HB228: HB228 Georgia Farmstead Relief Act; enact

Georgia currently regulates dairy processing under Chapter 2 of Title 26 of state law. This bill, called the Georgia Farmstead Relief Act, adds a new set of rules specifically for "farmsteads," small operations where cows, goats, or sheep are milked on-site and the milk is pasteurized and turned into cheese, butter, or ice cream in an on-site plant. The farmstead manufacturing plant itself would still need a dairy manufacturer's license from the Department of Agriculture, but the farmstead premises where the animals are kept would not need any separate license or permit. The bill requires all farmstead milk to be pasteurized, exempts qualifying farmsteads from most routine milk testing requirements and from brucellosis and tuberculosis testing in disease-free regions, and sets labeling, sampling, and inspection rules enforced by the Commissioner of Agriculture. Violations can bring license revocation, injunctions, and misdemeanor charges.

• Creates a new legal category, "farmstead," for small operations that milk their own cows, goats, or sheep and process that milk on-site into cheese, butter, or ice cream.
• Requires the on-site processing plant to hold a dairy manufacturer's license from the Department of Agriculture, while exempting the farmstead itself from any license or permit.
• Exempts qualifying farmsteads from most mandatory milk testing except appearance, odor, and antibiotic residue tests, and from brucellosis and tuberculosis testing in disease-free regions.
• Requires all farmstead milk to be pasteurized and bans use of raw milk in making farmstead products.
• Gives the Commissioner of Agriculture inspection, sampling, licensing, and rulemaking authority, and lets the Commissioner suspend or revoke licenses after a hearing.
• Makes violating the new article a misdemeanor and allows the Commissioner to seek court injunctions against continued violations.

Small dairy farmers and dairy product producers who milk cows, goats, or sheep and process the milk on their own farms, the Department of Agriculture and the Commissioner of Agriculture who would license and inspect these operations, and consumers who buy farmstead cheese, butter, or ice cream.

Small farms that both raise dairy animals and make cheese, butter, or ice cream on-site would face fewer licensing steps and less routine testing than standard dairy plants, potentially making it easier and cheaper to start or run this kind of small-scale operation while still requiring pasteurization, inspections, and labeling.

• Section 1 gives the bill its short title, the "Georgia Farmstead Relief Act."
• Section 2 adds a new Article 19 to Chapter 2 of Title 26, defining "farmstead," "farmstead manufacturing plant," "farmstead milk," and "farmstead products" (O.C.G.A. § 26-2-500).
• O.C.G.A. § 26-2-502 requires farmstead manufacturing plants to hold a dairy manufacturer's license, while § 26-2-503 exempts the farmstead itself from any license or permit.
• O.C.G.A. § 26-2-504 and 26-2-505 give the Commissioner inspection, sampling, and rulemaking authority, including labeling and equipment standards adopted under the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act.
• O.C.G.A. § 26-2-509 requires pasteurization of all farmstead milk and bars use of raw milk in farmstead products.
• O.C.G.A. §§ 26-2-510 and 26-2-511 exempt qualifying farmsteads from brucellosis, tuberculosis, and most other mandatory milk testing, keeping only appearance, odor, and antibiotic residue tests.
• O.C.G.A. § 26-2-514 allows the Commissioner to seek injunctions against violators, and § 26-2-515 makes violating the article a misdemeanor.
• Section 3 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2025-02-06House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-05House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-04House Hopper (House)

• Mitchell Horner (R, HD-003)Primary sponsor
• Jason Ridley (R, HD-006)
• Charles Cannon (R, HD-172)
• Jordan Ridley (R, HD-022)
• Brent Cox (R, HD-028)
• Trey Kelley (R, HD-016)

• dairy farming
• food safety regulation
• small farms
• agriculture licensing
• farmstead cheese and dairy products