RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A bill that proposes increasing the cap for gross sales of pickles and other acidified vegetables has been passed by the Virginia House of Delegates.
The measure, submitted by chief patron Del. Nicholas J. Freitas (R-62), was approved in a 94-2 vote in the House on Tuesday, Feb. 6.
Should the bill become law, it would raise the $3,000 gross sales annual revenue cap for the sale of pickles and other acidified vegetables with an equilibrium pH value of 4.6 to $9,000.
Supporters of the bill said the original pickle law had been given the sales cap to prevent overproduction if someone got sick from homemade products. With the bill having been in place for about a decade, supporters argue the increase is justified to keep up with inflation.
A substitute for the bill was added while in committee to clear up language in the law concerning what events were appropriate for homemade pickles to be sold at.
The change was recommended in direct response to an event in which a woman was issued a citation for selling cake pops at a holiday market craft show when the language in the law only specified farmer’s markets.
The bill would change the language to include any “temporary event that operates for a period of no more than 14 consecutive days.” Another change to the bill as a result of the cake pop incident involved the allowance of online advertising for pickle products as long as those products are sold in person under approved conditions.
