Moncton Market vendors forced to close due to new regulations

Various Moncton Market vendors say they are being forced to close down as a result of the New Brunswick health department’s new regulations.

According to the new rules, vendors at local markets are required to have a Class 5 license to operate a booth that handles foods that are at greater risk of contamination, like eggs, cheese and meats. A Class 5 is the equivalent of a commercial grade kitchen like those found in restaurants.

Mark Seamans, who has been selling his Smoke Shop beef jerky at the Moncton Market for the past three years, experienced the impact first hand when he got a surprise visit from government inspectors last Saturday.

“They asked us if we had a Class 5, we said no and they said you guys need a Class 5 in order to maintain selling jerky and they gave us a notification basically saying, ‘you’re done,'” said Seamans, owner of The Smoke Shop.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "They asked us if we had a Class 5, we said no and they said you guys need a Class 5 in order to maintain selling jerky and they gave us a notification basically saying, 'you're done,'" said Seamans, owner of The Smoke Shop.

Without the licence, Seamans has had to pack up his booth.

Seamans said provincial health officials are sending mixed messages.  At a seminar held by provincial health officials in November of last year, vendors were made aware of the new regulations and he was told that a Class 4 licence would be adequate for him to stay in business.

But he said that isn’t the case.

Government officials, however, told Global News that licencing would vary dependent on each business.

“It really depends on the nature of their operation,” said Cristin Muecke, New Brunswick’s deputy chief medical officer.  “For any particular specific case we would have to have a look at what they’re doing and what products they’re using and then they would look at the definition of Class 3, 4, and 5 and classify them accordingly.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It really depends on the nature of their operation," said Cristin Muecke, New Brunswick's deputy chief medical officer.  "For any particular specific case we would have to have a look at what they're doing and what products they're using and then they would look at the definition of Class 3, 4, and 5 and classify them accordingly."

Seamans said for him to have a Class 5 licence, he would need to upgrade and even have a separate building, something he said he can’t invest in, but he’s going to still try to find a way to sell his beef jerky.