Today’s edition of the Jackedrabbit Tweaks brings us some more rules for the party. Remember in the past, how you might be handed a grilled cheese sandwich by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, or enjoy some French toast airlifted in on a vulture capitalist’s private plane? Have you ever been in a camp, and been offered some water from a jug, a cup of coffee, or some ice from an RV’s ice maker?

Well, those things are still possible – as long as the money is paid in advance, and the paperwork is in order. Jawohl, mein kommandant!
If you plan on handing out non-alcoholic drinks or ice to anyone, you’ll need a permit. If you plan on cooking for more than 125 people in your camp, or even one person who is not in your camp, you’ll need a permit. If any of your food is prepared off the Playa, it needs to be done in a permitted establishment – you absolutely cannot do any food preparation at home. You will also need to explain how you will be controlling the temperature of the food on its long journey to the remote Playa.

To get a permit, you’ll have to pay $50 (check or money order only, no credit cards), and provide the gubmint with the entire menu you will be offering (including beverages), and what times you will be serving it. Yes, even for ice. You will also need a plan for managing waste water (hint: you can’t dump it on the Playa, or down the port-a-potties), and all other forms of waste. Any water you use for washing or rinsing has to be changed out every 2 hours.

The government inspectors will come to test how sanitary your conditions are, and you will need to provide the testing strips for them.

You will have to apply in writing by August 15, or in person at Carson City by August 22. Then you will need to go to Playa Info at Center Camp to collect your permit, before setting up any of your food serving area. From JRS:

they need to be received at Ellen Kunz’s office in Winnemucca no later than one week before the event – August 15, 2014.

Don’t wait until the last minute. It would be a shame to have to cancel your plans, or even risk being closed at the event. The mailing address is  NSHD – PHCS 475 West Haskell Street Suite 38, Winnemucca, NV 89445.

In Person: No later than THURSDAY AUGUST 22. 4150 Technology Way Suite 100, Carson City, NV. Phone: (775) 687-7550 or 475 West Haskell Street Suite 38 Winnemucca, NV.  Phone (775) 623-6588.

On the application, the event coordinator is ‘Burning Man‘. Leave the location blank, unless you know what street and intersection you be at during the event. After mailing the application and $50 USD payment, you must come and pick up your permit at Playa Info in Center Camp from Sunday August 24 through Saturday August 30 (specific hours to be determined and announced)

No sushi, no cold cuts. No home made ice creams, cookies, or soups. No water or juice dispensers. You wanna give someone a coffee? It better be black.

If the food is hot, it has to be above 135º, and if it’s cold, below 41°. Utensils, cups, coolers and any other storage containers must be at least 6″ off the ground. Any buckets need to be changed every 2 hours. Food handlers need to be adequately clothed.

Here’s what you CAN serve without a permit:

• Alcoholic beverages (to people 21 and over)
• Foods that are commercially prepackaged and served unopened in single serve size packaging not requiring refrigeration. Examples of these foods include unopened packages of candy, single serve sized bags of chips, pretzels, snack bars, cookies, nuts, cans of soda, bottled water
• Whole uncut fruit 
• Coffee, tea, or hot chocolate prepared and served without any milk or dairy; using only powdered non-dairy creamer or ultra-pasteurized dairy creamer in individual servings
• Commercially prepared acidic beverages such as orange juice or lemonade that are served from the original container without the addition of ice or other foods
• Commercially prepared, prepackaged and unopened individual ice cream bars or containers
• Cotton candy
• Popcorn

If you’re looking for uncut fruit, try Comfort and Joy!

Here are some items that MUST have a permit:

• Foods that require time/temperature control for safety, such as all meats and animal products 
• Dairy products
• Any food not individually wrapped or portioned that is handled by others.
• Any cut fruits or vegetables served in pieces or juiced.
• Coffee and teas if you are offering milk, dairy or soy as part of your service

And here are some absolute no-no’s:

• Do not scoop ice with bare hands or glasses or cups and do not allow your camp mates to, either.
• Foods from unapproved sources. Hunted meat or game animals, non-commercially caught fish, and gathered foods such as wild mushrooms may not be served. (You may only serve food obtained from permitted food establishments such as grocery stores and restaurants.)
• Previously prepared homemade foods including home canned foods. No foods for public consumption may be prepared in a private home. Foods must be prepared on-site or be prepared in a permitted commercial establishment.
• Unpasteurized milk or milk products or unpasteurized juices.
• raw or undercooked animal products unless prior approval from NDPBH is received and a consumer advisory is in place. Live or frozen shellfish (oysters, clams, mussels and scallops) may not be served raw or under cooked under any circumstances.
• If you wish to use shellfish as an ingredient it must be pre-cooked by the manufacturer.
• No undercooked foods containing eggs
• Any food that has undergone reduced oxygen packaging, such as vacuum sealing or sous-vide preparations.
• food service volunteers may not eat, smoke or care for small children while they are working in the camp kitchen.
• Beverage consumption by food handlers is only allowed from a closed container.
• No cloth towels may be used to dry hands. They harbor and spread germs.
• Minimize the amount of food preparation in your camp. Examples include using pre-formed hamburger patties and pre-cut and pre-washed vegetables. [of course, you can’t form the patties or cut and wash the vegetables at home. You will have to get access to a licensed establishment for prep]
• Store and keep raw animal foods separate from ready-to-eat foods.
• Store different species of raw animal products separately. If stored in the same cooler, use separate, sealed containers and store properly by placing raw chicken which has the highest required cooking temperature on the bottom

You will need to provide the following:

• menu of all items including beverages
• serving times
• where did you purchase the food
• where was the food prepared
• how was the temperature of the food controlled
• list all equipment used to hold, prepare, or serve food, including serving utensils, cups, coolers, grills, “etc.”
• handwashing station
• stem thermometer
• sanitizer (bleach)
• 3 waste water buckets
• serving utensils
• tables (food prep)
• soap (dishwashing, hand)
• cooling unit(s)
• gloves
• paper towels (hand drying)
• 3 dishwashing basins
• wiping bucket (for sanitizing surfaces)
• spray bottle and paper towels
• SANITIZER TEST STRIPS (NDPBH WILL NOT PROVIDE THESE)

If all those rules don’t put you off, you can find the 4-page permit application here, and the self-inspection checklist here.