UPDATED COVID-19 MARKET PROTOCOLS FOR MEMBERS May 18, 2020

It is extremely important that if you or any of your staff are feeling sick (any cold or flu-like symptoms), that you do not come to the market or handle any produce. Please communicate with Laura Hughes or call the voicemail to ensure we know whether you are planning to attend the market or not. We will not charge any cancellation fees for last minute cancellations in the event of any illness, but vendors that call out sick may not return to the market for 2 weeks to protect customers and other vendors in case of potential Covid-19 infection. We encourage you to add a trusted friend, another NCGA member, as a Second Producer on your CPC so that if you do fall ill you can easily send your products to market with that vendor. You are allowed to sell for up to 2 other vendors at a time. Please call the Humboldt County Agriculture Department if you need to add someone as a Second Producer to your Certified Producer Certificate. You may now make this change by phone without the need to go to the Ag Department office. Following increased public health protocols, we are committed to taking the additional steps necessary to do our part to slow the spread of CoronaVirus and Covid-19. Find example photos at the end of this document. We require that vendors who attend the market commit to the following:

● Wear a mask while at the market. ● Suspend all food sampling ● Practice good hand hygiene and wear gloves when handling food/money. Change

gloves/sanitize/wash hands before touching food, and after touching money, phone or any non-food surface.

● Consider adding a hand-washing station to your booth (required for prepared food vendors). ● Have a designated money handler separate from the person handling produce if possible. ● Remind staff about best hygiene practices including washing their hands often with soap and

water for at least 20 seconds. ● Do not allow customers to handle or touch any items at your booth. Please select and bag

items for them. Add signage like, “Please don’t touch the produce, we will assist.” or “Please touch with your eyes.”

● Practice social distancing and communicate social distancing protocols with customers at the market. Maintain 6 feet between customers (except those who are family members/share a household). This may mean only 1 household may shop at your booth at a time. No one other than you (the vendor), your employees, or market staff may enter your booth during market.

● Arrange your booth to encourage distance and direct the flow of customers. Add rope/ribbon or an empty table at the front of your booth to create a boundary and enforce spacing between customers and products to ensure items are out of reach. Consider spreading out tables in a

single line, rather than a U shape. Set tables back from the front edge of the booth to prevent contamination. Add signage as needed.

● Consider having “Display Only” items for customers to view (not touch), and have items for sale further back in the booth to prevent contamination. Pre-bag/pre-package produce/food as much as possible.

● Create a boundary at the back of booths. Do not allow customers to cross or go between booths.

● Consider displaying a sign at the beginning of your line across the sidewalk in the grass that lists everything you have available so shoppers are prepared when they enter your booth.

● Encourage customers to pre-order/pre-pay as much as possible and only pick-up at market. ● Ask for exact change when possible. We recommend that you add payment options like credit

cards, or hands-free payment options like Venmo or Paypal. ● Wipe down payment cards and point-of-sale devices between each transaction. ● Minimize conversations with customers to focus on the transaction. ● Frequently clean tables and other high-contact surfaces. ● Prepared food vendors with Temporary Food Facilities are no longer allowed at market at this

time, according to guidance received from Environmental Health on May 12th. Prepared food vendors with current Mobile Food Facility Permits may continue to operate.

● Prepared food vendors must only offer food to-go, not for on-site consumption. Food must be covered and no utensils may be offered.

● Inform the Market Manager/Assistant Manager of unsafe situations requiring immediate attention.

NCGA is taking the following public safety measures:

● Spreading out the spacing of market vendor booths to increase social distancing among patrons standing in line and walking about the market.

● Limiting foot traffic to one way flow around the Plaza. ● Increasing signage and other market infrastructure to assist with social distancing, line

management and customer communication. ● Adding rope at the front and back of vendor booths to create a space boundary between

vendor tables and customers, and to prevent customers from entering the market between vendor booths.

● Clearly marking where lines begin and enforcing 6 foot distance between customers. ● Monitoring the number of customers at the market and conducting regular rounds to

encourage customers not to socially gather or eat food on site. ● Inviting the Arcata Police Department to have a presence on the Plaza as ambassadors of

education and to share awareness about the importance of social distancing and not congregating in the open spaces.

● Continuing to provide additional hand washing stations at the market. ● Continuing to provide hand sanitizer and gloves at the info booth as well as signage around

the market encouraging safe prevention methods. ● Continuing to remind staff and vendors about best hygiene practices including washing their

hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. ● Continuing to wipe down payment cards and point-of-sale devices regularly. ● Increasing the frequency of cleaning tables and other high-contact surfaces. ● Requiring sanitary gloves be used by market staff, especially when handling money. ● Requiring staff change gloves and sanitize/wash hands before handling produce.

● Eliminating non-essential services such as craft or non-food booths, bands, or other entertainment.

● Communicating with the public. Information for the public is now available on our website and social media pages. We encourage you to share those documents and use the same language with customers and the media as questions arise.

Examples of 6 feet distance between customers in line. NOTE: These photos were taken before we required masks for customers and members:

Examples of booth setup designs that keep customers a safe distance away from products, and/or prevent products from contamination:

Examples to add more distance or safety to customers who are making payments: