What makes the case of farmer Mark Baker and his campaign to reverse the Michigan Department of Natural Resources feral-hog genetic purification program different from other food rights cases that have taken place in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and California over the last few years?
Well, the fact that it doesnt involve raw milk makes it different. But there is something else: the transparent economic agenda.
When the Michigan Department of Natural Resources in April 2012 implemented its Invasive Species Order (ISO) aimed at ridding the state of pig breeds the DNR designated as feral, the economic aspects of the order were clear for all to see. As the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, which is helping provide legal representation to Baker has explained it, the state can ban pig breeds on the basis of characteristics it disapproves of, not whether certain pigs are creating a nuisance (the supposed original intent of the ISO). Obviously, the pig breeds the state disapproves of are never the ones being raised by the states large pork producers. The disapproved ones are those being raised for their superior meat, by farmers like Baker.
In the last few weeks, Michigan has added a new wrinkle to its economic squeeze play against small pig breeders, beyond pushing farmers like Baker to the brink of financial ruin by scaring off his commercial customers, including high-end restaurants in Detroit and other metropolitan areas.
The state, via the Michigan Attorney General, has demanded a $700,000 fine against Baker–based on the maximum $10,000 for each of 70 pigs.
The fine came in just the last few weeks, after the state offered Baker, a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force, a settlement–get rid of the banned pigs and promise never to raise banned species again, in exchange for not incurring a fine.
Bakers one-word response to the Michigan Attorney General was in the spirit of another military man once asked to surrender in Germany during World War II: Nuts!
Moreover, he is potentially raising the stakes by allowing several sows to give birth in the next few weeks. The fine could hit $1 million or more.
To Baker, the states financial assault is crazy. Moreover, it is fundamentally illegal, in his view. It is illegal under the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. (Which states, Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.) Theyre in violation on two of the provisions–the excessive fines and the cruel and unusual punishment, says Baker.
The whole legal mish-mash–Baker’s contention the state is interfering with his livelihood and the state’s effort to impose the huge fine–comes to a head at 1 p.m. Friday, when supporters of food rights from around the country will gather at the Missaukee County Courthouse in Lake City, MI, for an initial hearing on Bakers case against the state. The court hearing will be followed by a pig roast at Bakers farm on Saturday.
The food police are obviously groping for new tactics to intimidate farmers. Their criminal charges against Alvin Schlangen in Minnesota and Vernon Hershberger in Wisconsin have been rejected by juries. So now, in Michigan, enforcers are trying to scare a farmer with the threat of huge fines. But they are up against one tough guy. And lots of people in back of him. Hundreds are expected to show up on Friday and Saturday.
So far, Bakers campaign to stay in business and fight the state has raised more than $35,000 of its $50,000 goal. Impressive as the support has been, there is still a need for more help beyond the 634 pledges made so far.
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Im sorry to be missing the Baker court hearing and pig roast this weekend, but I have had a long-standing commitment to speak at the Solarfest Festival in Tinmouth, VT, signing copies of my new book (Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Food Rights) and speaking at 10:30 Sunday morning about the struggle for food rights. If youre not too far away, its an impressive gathering of people doing great things with solar energy–Ive spoken there before, and all the tents where speakers do their PowerPoint and video presentations are powered with solar energy.
Getting back to an earlier discussion, while Baker will do whatever he feels is necessary in court, we citizens shouldn’t be talking about the Eighth Amendment, which seems to imply that Baker did anything wrong at all in the first place, and that the government has any legitimate authority here at all.
Also, the way things are going with the corporatist courts as we return to feudalism, we can expect the central government courts to start ruling that the Bill of Rights doesn’t apply to the states, just like in the old days, wherever that’s convenient for the system. So if the movement tries to build on the constitutional jurisprudence of the courts, it’ll be building on sand.
On the other hand the ideas, discussion, and participatory politics of constitutionalism, as the CELDF has been undertaking, can be a potent political and organizational vehicle. But rather than arguing about the 8th Amendment, we need to assert the 9th and 10th, that the Constitution rules out any central government prerogative over food whatsoever, including in the government’s “private” corporate form.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/07/09/raw-milk-case.aspx?e_cid=20130709_DNL_art_2&utm_source=dnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art2&utm_campaign=20130709
What if some State Regulator type showed up at your dairy and said….”you can only milk and breed Holsteins and you must kill all of your Jerseys”…..”NUTS” is a very kind and measured response. I would make some rather loud, passionate and headline making comments. “Nuts” would be tame. “NUTS” does have a nice military history correlation, I must admit.
A jury trial will bring these Nazis to their Nuremberg Knees. They have clearly gone Fascist. Fascism is when corporate interests are protected by the state by the powers of the state. This is Fascism and there is not even the superficial political cover of “food safety”. A “cooked pig is a cooked pig”, politically feral or not they are both safe to eat!! There is no food safety issue here…this is a market control and market jealousy problem. Mark Baker is growing an all natural non CAFO type pig and selling to high end customers that demand a great tasting pork that is not bred as a CAFO slave. These Nazis are brazenly brave and do not realize that a jury is going to hang their asses in public and the media is going to love this one. There is no cover of the Food Safety Modernization Act….there is no real reason to require a breeding of a monoculture of pigs!! A jury will see right through this!! Go Mark!!
The math on raw milk profit is a little off. Pasture grazed cows on organic feeds produce more like 4 to 5 gallons per day. The 18 dollars per gallon is not to the farmer, that is retail or about 45% higher than farm gate. The farmer sees more like $12 of the $18. The distributor and retailer sees the rest. The numbers for a smaller micro dairy is completely different. When the over head is spread over 3cows the costs are much higher and break even is more like the $18 per gallon numbers if there is insurance, etc.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030202740575
http://www.holsteinusa.com/holstein_breed/holstein101.html?tab=2#TabbedP…
“With a standard lactation lasting 305 days, that comes out to 75 pounds, or almost 9 gallons of milk per cow per day.”
http://www.internationalgrasslands.org/files/igc/publications/1997/2-29-089.pdf
“An all pasture diet resulted in cows producing 33% less milk”
1/3 of 9 gal is 6 gal
305 days is @ 43 weeks. $14/gal X 6 gal= $84 per day per cow or $588/week per cow. If you have 300 head of lactating cows that comes to $176400.00 per week.
Times 43 weeks = $7,585,200.00 gross Still a hefty profit for approximately 43 weeks.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030202740575
How accurate is the data at the links provided? In my industry we have RS Means data for construction costs which many use yet the numbers are off more than on. I’m guessing the overhead costs for doing business in CA skews the numbers a fair bit as well. I do agree that they have a nice profit margin, good for Mark.
As I have said before, in our market we pay $5 a gallon, farmer has 100 cows and is tested weekly. He has refrigerated trucks, two iirc, and delivers twice a week. He was selling to WF at one point until they stopped raw milk sales.
I wondering if in hindsight, the State of Virginia wishes they had just let him sell his milk?
Used to be profitable as evidenced by the many little dairy barns that stand empty all over our countryside. Fifty years ago, these farmer milked 10-20 cows, and distributed the milk either directly, or via a localized creamery system. Every small town had a small creamery.
But today, no I don’t think a 10 cow dairy is profitable, at least in California….if it is indeed a “dairy.” The cost to build infrasture to meet codes would be cost prohibitive. If it is a “herdshare”, or if at some point the state creates a licensing exemption for micro dairies, then I think yes an operation of that size can be profitable if the milk is priced appropriately.
All are closed now, and the buildings do not meet state licensing requirments.
Small dairies used to be profitable as evidenced by the many little dairy barns that stand empty all over our countryside. Fifty years ago, these farmers milked 10-20 cows, and distributed the milk either directly, or via a localized creamery system. Every small town had a small creamery.
But today, no I don’t think a 10 cow dairy is profitable, at least in California….if it is indeed a “dairy.” The cost to build infrasture to meet codes would be cost prohibitive. If it is a “herdshare”, or if at some point the state creates a licensing exemption for micro dairies, then I think yes an operation of that size can be profitable if the milk is priced appropriately.
A nice wrapup of the Mark Baker court hearing today in Michigan, from Kelly the Kitchen Kop:
http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2013/07/a-judge-with-common-sense-baker-farm-update-hog-wash-hearing.html
I think she may be putting too much stock in the judge’s seemingly intelligent and probing questions, however. I’ve seen that before, as a lead-in to totally one-sided decisions, against the farmer.
If you think what we do is easy or highly profitable??? You are smoking some very strong pot. Insurance for raw milk? RAWMI level training and food safety systems?
If it was easy…..where is the competition in this market?
It is difficult and stressful. No joking!!
http://www.strongcoffeefilm.com/trailer/trailer.html
http://www.salon.com/2013/07/07/%E2%80%9Cwhy_did_you_shoot_me_i_was_reading_a_book_the_new_warrior_cop_is_out_of_control/
Awesome and refreshing!! http://www.google.com/search?um=1&hl=en&biw=1024&bih=672&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=PZ7bUeqVD42Rigf7n4CICg&q=crave+brothers+cheese+labels&oq=crave+brothers+cheese+labels&gs_l=img.3…5660.11842.0.12789.14.9.0.5.5.0.552.2779.1j0j3j4j0j1.9.0….0…1c.1.19.img.xzgFxiKfhRw#biv=i%7C25%3Bd%7CZ4UIbyMPtOH5BM%3A
Here it is.
The price of OP raw milk at farmers markets includes a hefty labor charge. Farmrs markets also assess a fee to sell as well. We pay our farmers market representatives very well… If we had turnover we would fail. Teaching and understanding raw milk is an earned skill. It takes a person with excellent interpersonal skill and lots of knowledge. The questions asked by farmers market buyers are vast.
The price of RAWMI Listed raw milk in Oregon is about $18 per gallon with a waiting line to get it. These producers test, report bacteria counts, have a well considered published food safety plan and they have insurance.
If more cows were being milked I am sure the price would be a little lower. Oregon law prohibits the sale of raw milk from more than three cows. Cow Shares in Oregon are a different subject. When your child’s asthma goes away…or your child’s excema goes away….priceless. No drugs provided by big pharma do this…none!!! Safety and RAWMI Listing gives great assurance to he consumer. Not a promise….or guarantee like pasteurized milk and cheeses…( a horrible lie ) just a level of confidence and transparent confirmation of very low risk.
However, as a small herdshare in CA, it also means that we do not have to build a state-approved building, and sure aren’t paying a half million dollars to a dairy pool! (Is that the deal for all dairies that do direct sales??? ) We also pay ZERO for marketing and ZERO for distribution, as we are working at the extremely local level.
So there are savings associated with “small” as well. And at the end of the day, the cost that our share-owners pay to co-produce with us milk is very comparable to retail raw milk. Retail raw is definitely more convenient and appeals to a certain customer. Herdshare participation is much more “participatory” and appeals to a different group that will likely never be in the majority.
This is what happens when the truth is denied for years and years. The market starts voting and other industries start to fill the Gut Gap. Lactose intolerance and allergies are a problem with PASTEURIZED milk and not raw milk.
Now the dairy industry is trying to sue to win back their dairy case and their namesake….MILK…but the cow has left the barn and now Alternatives using the cows glorious “MILK” name are winning market share. A little late to start winning over consumers guts. How about “start listening to the best Milk Scientists in the world at UC Davis”…they had the answers years ago. In fact the dairy industry even funded the research, but when the data came in…they refused to follow the advice. Sounds like a serious mistake.
Lately, this blog appears to have declined into something other than what I had thought it was intended. It’s a shame as in the past it has been a great learning arena. Is it the death of a blog?