Thank you for FOOD!

excellent move on jon's part. (0.00 / 0)

that's the guy i voted for!

freedom for small farmers. better food for bears.

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by: problembear @ Thu Nov 25, 2010 at 00:16:51 AM UTC

Some family farmers (0.00 / 0)

  may feel insulted Pbear.  

"Small producers are not raising a commodity, but are raising food. Industrial agriculture takes the people out of the equation."

So, is Tester saying that most of what American farmers grow is not actually food?  Is he saying the people who grow it are not people?  What is a "small producer?"  Do 40% of Americans need to move back into full time farming for us to have "food?"

Ignorance Revealed

What Senator Tester's insulting remarks actually reveals is how little he knows about American farming.    He needs to read the statistics that our government tracks showing that the vast majority of American farmland is still in family owned and operated farms (see map below).  He would do well to actually visit some other types of farms that he believes to be "industrial" to see what a great job they do and how hard they work to maintain food safety and quality.  He needs to show a little respect for a community of hard working, risk-taking people that are providing us with excellent, affordable, nutritious food. The broad-brush use of the terms "industrial" and "factory" as slurs against most farmers merely indicates a lack of  familiarity with the diversity and reality of modern farm operations.

 I'm interested to hear whether Montana family farmers consider what they grow to be "food" and whether they consider themselves to be "people."  Tester's  demonizing devisive rhetoric does nothing to address food safety.

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by: Craig Moore @ Thu Nov 25, 2010 at 19:22:14 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

i am thinking that is a lot of over the top extrapolation from one of jon's sentences (0.00 / 0)

according to the map you directed us to in your link it appears that much of montana's farmland is highly corporatized. i think jon is on the right track here.

i am thinking that link is probably astro-turf sponsored by conagra or monsanto to muddy our thinking on this.

whatever congress can to to help small family farmers succeed is ok with me. most of what is on our table this thanksgiving is grown locally by montana family farms.

sometimes me thinks thou doth protest too much.

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by: problembear @ Thu Nov 25, 2010 at 21:40:48 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Pbear check out (0.00 / 0)

who is supporting and opposing the bill.

Who supports SB 510? Who's against it?

Supporters include General Mills, Kraft Foods, Monsanto, and the National Association of Manufacturers. Opponents include the American Grassfed Association, Family Farm Defenders, and the Small Farms Conservancy. The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture, which represents smaller farmers, has backed the bill.

Eric Schlosser, author of "Fast Food Nation," and Michael Pollan, author of "The Omnivore's Dilemma," support the law in its current form. "SB 510 is the most important food safety legislation in a generation," they wrote recently. "The Tester Amendment will make it even more effective, strengthening food safety rules while protecting small farmers and producers. We both think this is the right thing to do."

Family Farm Defenders actually supports the Tester amendment but opposes the bill.  Making lemonade...

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by: Craig Moore @ Thu Nov 25, 2010 at 21:50:05 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Wrong answer (0.00 / 0)

You've told us who supports the bill, Craig.  How many of those support the amendment?

Here's the deal, and it's every bit as applicable to your first link.  Small scale producers have a choice.  They can sell locally or they can produce for sale to large corporate distribution.  If SB510 passes without the Tester amendment, then small producers will be more coerced into selling to large aggregates simply because they haven't the wherewithal to fulfill the requirements of regulation.  It's indentured servitude, and if I were ConAgra, I'd favor that too.  So don't tell us all who supports the bill.  Which of these imo'tant entities supports the amendment?

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by: Rob Kailey @ Sat Nov 27, 2010 at 00:43:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Separating the amendment (0.00 / 0)

from the bill is the wrong way to go.  Supposedly, SB510 is about food safety.  The justification points to all of the tainted food instances in the past years.  Funny though, those situations already violated food, livestock, and agricultural safety regulations.  Another layer by a different federal agency doesn't make things safer.  Tester's amendment doesn't address the larger issue and merely points to economics.  His smaller producers still come under the larger bill's control if there is a traceable incidence of tainting back to that producer.  That's nice, sorta stands the purpose of the bill on its head of preventing food tainting and illnesses.  

Now, why not a single standard where every producer is exempt until they commit a traceable transgression?  The same sword over all necks.  

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by: Craig Moore @ Sat Nov 27, 2010 at 16:27:36 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Especially REAL food!! (0.00 / 0)

I'm way too tired to go into the politics of this at the moment
It must be that organic turkey, which was outstanding, I must say! Or maybe even beyond outstanding, since it was thanks to Town & Country's long-time T-Day promo here in the Bozone, where if you spend a reasonable portion of your grocery budget there you get a "free" organic Hutterite turkey.  And again, it ruled!!
But the veggies... !
I'm telling ya... there's no comparison.  
So I will give an unabashed plug for the Bozeman Winter Farmer's Market, http://www.bozemanwintermarket...

And Happy Thanksgiving all!

And Rob, someday when we have time (hah!) I'd be curious to know who beat me to Rimrock here.  And if they no longer exist, if I could trump them on this matter?  

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by: Rimrock @ Fri Nov 26, 2010 at 03:58:41 AM UTC

Bill, (0.00 / 0)

I may be able to help you out here.  Click on my name and you'll find my email.  Shoot me a letter, please.

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by: Rob Kailey @ Fri Nov 26, 2010 at 19:29:37 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Praise the Lord!! (0.00 / 0)

I have a new (wait a minute, make that old) identity!

hahahaha  It had already been a pretty good day, but this made me laugh out loud.

Thanks, Wulfgar!  aka Rob.  And incidentally, this is Bill O'Connell, aka Rimrock.  

Love it...

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by: Rimrock @ Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 04:09:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Oops! (0.00 / 0)

Upon a re-read, it's clear I should mention the organic carrots we had today were from T & C.  And just like Matt's, from Bozeman Botanical, they're just SO much better...

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by: Rimrock @ Fri Nov 26, 2010 at 04:50:51 AM UTC

So is Tester a "large, corporate farmer?" (0.00 / 0)

Seeing how Sen. Tester's own farm doesn't even qualify for an exemption under this amendment (see his own press release for that granola of info), it seems only two scenarios are plausible:

1.  Senator Tester must himself be a "large, corporate farmer."

or

2.  The amendment truly doesn't exempt small family farms.  

By the way- is there a Frozen Farmers Market in Missoula this Saturday?  Seeing how my wife are in town and don't have a playoff game to go to- wondering what else is going on...

-Aaron Flint

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by: Aaron Flint @ Fri Nov 26, 2010 at 14:11:45 PM UTC

meant to say "and I" of course (0.00 / 0)

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by: Aaron Flint @ Fri Nov 26, 2010 at 14:14:47 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Right wing claptrap (0.00 / 0)

It's pretty evident that wingnuts expect from politicians what they expect of themselves.  Hence, it might seem surprising to Mr. Flint that Jon makes an amendment that doesn't favor himself, and so certainly he must not understand what he's really doing.  ~sigh~

Rhetoric is used all the time by politicians, especially when trying to drive a message.  The message here from Jon Tester is that small producers should not be subject to the same regulations as himself or other large producers.  Expecting the pushback to his amendment from Monsanto, Conagra, Tyson production and others, Tester framed this in populist terms.  Cue the selective outrage and hurt fee fees from the right.

I'm curious, Aaron.  Are you actually going to promote the idea that Tester doesn't know his own farm, or are you just in a snit that he framed an argument better and sooner than your biased and partisan attack?

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by: Rob Kailey @ Sat Nov 27, 2010 at 00:37:49 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Define a "family-farmer" (0.00 / 0)

Rob,

Wow- you got mighty defensive on that one without even answering the basic question.  Well- you're first shot veered way left, but much like the Boise State kicker I'll give you another shot.  

Here's the simple point: the Montana media can't on one hand write puff piece after puff piece on "Farmer Jon" and his family farm...then parrot the talking point that this amendment exempts "family farms"...if his farm doesn't even qualify.  

The point has little to do with Jon Tester and more to do with cut and paste reporting.  Most family farms in Montana may think they would qualify under this amendment when in reality they would not.  

It's also worth pointing out that when the left cries of "large corporate farmers"- they are really criticizing the majority of Montana farmers.   Even- as is now clear- their dear Senator.

 

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by: Aaron Flint @ Mon Nov 29, 2010 at 18:13:46 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Aaron (0.00 / 0)

You see my response as defensive simply because "defense" is exactly what you crave.  Like most wingnuts, you expect that you are owed an answer to whatever misleading little questions you have that favor your desires.  Here's a hint for you, Aaron, you're not owed anything, certainly not by me.

And I notice that you failed to answer an even more basic question from me:  Are you seriously promoting the idea that Tester doesn't know his own farm?

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by: Rob Kailey @ Mon Nov 29, 2010 at 20:23:49 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Food Safety (0.00 / 0)

Rob Kailey observes that "The threat posed by small producers is very limited." This is true insofar as the threat is measured by the number of illnesses that are likely to occur. But the potency of the microbes that cause food borne illnesses is unrelated to the size of the farm that's infected. We get just as sick from a small farmer's salmonella as from a corporate farmer's.

This is why I avoid farmer's markets. It seems to me that there's little quality control other than the good character of the farmer and his best efforts, and that may not be enough to ensure safety.

Consider the example of the Estrella Family Creamery in the Wynoochee River valley on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. According to the 19 November 2010 New York Times, the creamery is infected with listeria, a deadly microbe. The FDA wants the creamery to recall a large portion of its cheeses -- but cheesemaker Kelli Estrella refuses to comply with the request. The FDA is moving to compel compliance, and most likely will succeed, but the situation is a good example of how small farms can be just as dangerous to their customers as big farms.

I recognize that for some the issue has become one of the right to eat locally grown produce. Or any food at all (Estrella thinks regulation is an attempt to ban raw milk). That argument politically strengthens the small farmers' case, but I think it needs to be separated from the food safety issues and the need for regulation and standards at all levels of production. That may generate additional expense for some small farmers, and some marginal operations may become economically unviable. That's an acceptable price for protecting the public.

I think Tester is confusing protecting the farmer's pocketbook with protecting the public's health.

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by: jrconner @ Sat Nov 27, 2010 at 21:21:39 PM UTC

Farmer's Market regulations (0.00 / 0)

I normally find very little to disagree with you on, JR, but speaking for the Bozeman markets at least...
Gallatin County has fairly strict (and reasonable) requirements for food vendors.  Everyone has to get signed off individually by the county sanitarian, who also regularly makes the rounds at the markets. It's handled quite well, in my extremely biased opinion.
If anyone had gotten sick from food purchased at the markets, I'm pretty sure we'd have heard about it by now.  In fact I'll take our odds over the "industrialized" system any day.

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by: Rimrock @ Mon Nov 29, 2010 at 00:42:30 AM UTC