Over the past few years, Farm Aid has been on the lookout for deceptive state-based policy maneuvers posing as farmer-friendly that actually erode local control over what kind of agricultural development occurs in the state and threaten the regulation of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), food safety and much more. We’ve seen these deceptive initiatives crop up in Ohio, Missouri, and now they are threatening family farm livelihoods in Kentucky.
Farm Aid partner organization, Community Farm Alliance, recently alerted us to a dangerous bill (HB 205) working its way through the House that will put a small number of commodity group representatives in charge of writing regulations for all Kentucky farmers no matter what their size, what they produce, or how they market their goods. The bill provides no specific representation for small-scale family farms, organic farmers, or farmers making a living by selling their products through direct markets. The bill needlessly overhauls the State Board of Agriculture for no other reason than to give big agribusiness the power to regulate its own industry. In other words, just another example of the fox guarding the hen house!
What can you do? Take Action Now!
- Call your legislator TODAY and ask them to say NO to HB 205! You can reach the legislative message line by calling 1-800-372-7181. A quick way to find out who your Kentucky State House Representative is by visiting www.congress.org. On the right side of the page beneath the heading “GET INVOLVED” enter in your 9 digit zip code in the form of: xxxxx-xxxx. Knowing the last four digits of your zip code will help you locate your exact House legislator, especially if you are in a city with multiple representatives.
- Forward this page to friends and family. There is no time to delay! This bill is under active consideration and needs to be stopped immediately in its tracks.
For more background information, visit this page on the Community Farm Alliance site.
