MDARD has confirmed that greenhouses ARE considered essential businesses in the state of Michigan.
See MDARD’s Food Ag Essential Document with highlighted the section greenhouses fall under. It states: Farm workers and support service workers including those who plant, grow, and harvest agricultural commodities; commodity inspections; fuel ethanol facilities; storage facilities; and other agricultural inputs.
The department suggests for you to give each employee designated as essential a letter on your letterhead identifying them as such for their travel to and from work. You should reference the Governor’s Executive Order #2020-21 in the letter. They also felt it may be a good idea to reach out to law enforcement to let them know you have employees who will be traveling to and from work on a regular basis. The department was asked to supply a template for the letter and we will share this as soon as we receive it.
Garden Centers/retail locations are yet to be determined as essential businesses.
This is still all very fluid and changing hourly so we will continue to send out information as we receive it to our members. If you have any questions please reach out to us anytime.
Author: Cindy Ray
Cindy has years of experience in association management and administrative support.
