Lonnie Thompson

Lonnie works fulltime at a local restaurant and has three children. He also owns and operates a homemade foods and home goods business with his wife from their home. Having a home-based business is vital to Lonnie’s family because his wife can only work from home due to a serious seizure disorder.

When the Act passed in 2017, Lonnie began canning specialty low‑acid foods, like canned beets, bell pepper relish, spicy salsas, and apple butter, and selling them in Mason jars. He became most popular for his home‑canned vegetable mixes, which his customers would often buy to cook in stir-fries.

Now, the Department has banned Lonnie from selling his low‑acid home‑canned foods and earning vital income to support his family. He has also had to disappoint his customers by turning down offers for these foods.