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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] "HR 875" Myth Sows Terror Among Organic Gardeners

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  • From: Pete Vukovich <pvukovic1@yahoo.com>
  • To: Healthy soil and sustainable growing <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] "HR 875" Myth Sows Terror Among Organic Gardeners
  • Date: Wed, 29 Apr 2009 11:46:02 -0700 (PDT)

Strange phenomena, it seems equally as absurd to claim the bill will end backyard organic farming as it does to claim it will 'focus on large scale producers'. The later comes down to enforcement, and the current state of enforcement appears to be politically selective. Never understood how they found money for under cover milk buying cops who target small producers in so many states, but not a dollar to test the effects of rgbh.

I am skeptical the remedies (fine schedules and product removal powers) and authorities being dolled out in this bill. Its unclear the fines would impact anyone but a small farmer, how did they arrive at these powers and numbers? The bill may be perfectly innocent or innocently motivated, but  with enough scheming and do nothing lawyers on a payroll almost any bill can end up in a perverse state.

 If along with new enforcement and inspection powers the government agreed to fund such inspections and tests (didn't see that in the bill) for small producers (and define small) it might be more useful. Its clear the crux of food safety is an industrial issue firmly compounded in the food distribution and processing chain, not a CSA , farmers market or truck stand - but the bill says relatively little about distribution and processing.

If I weren't reading stories about organic almonds in california requiring pasteurization to suit the needs of industrial almond production,
complete with a judge ignorant of skill and scale claiming 'the economic needs of the small producer shouldn't trump the non-existent safety needs of large industry',  I'd be a little more confident the government had wrapped its head around food safety. 

Can't say this bill will end organic farming, but I'm not sure the government is ready or capable to be part of food safety either.

--- On Wed, 4/29/09, Tradingpost <tradingpost@lobo.net> wrote:
From: Tradingpost <tradingpost@lobo.net>
Subject: [Livingontheland] "HR 875" Myth Sows Terror Among Organic Gardeners
To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2009, 10:58 AM

"HR 875" Myth Sows Terror Among Organic Gardeners
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/09/hr-875-myth-sows-terror-a_n_185230.
html
April 15, 2009 at 12:27 PM







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