Whats even sadder than the observations about Rawesome Food Club recalled by Victoria Bloch in the previous post is the fact that the police action against the private food club worked exactly as the government enforcers hoped it would.
How do I know? In connection with research I did for my book, Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Food Rights, I learned that the five federal, state, county, and local agencies involved in the first raid on Rawesome in June 2010 made it a point to explore the internal relationships of the Rawesome principals. As part of the initial state and county investigations into Rawesome to prepare for the June 2010 raid, the officials obtained via search warrants access to the emails of Aajonus Vonderplanitz, Sharon Palmer, and Victoria Bloch.
From those emails, they learned of the divisions that existed at Rawesome between the strong personalities Victoria Bloch described. Carrying out a divide-and-conquer strategy would be an easy matter, begun via the initial raid of June 2010 and completed with the August 2011 raid that included many felony charges being filed against Palmer, Bloch, and James Stewart, the Rawesome owner, allegedly in connection with illegal raw milk sales by Palmer and at Rawesome. Subsequent charges against Palmer and Stewart would come in Ventura County in connection with Palmer’s acquisition of the farm there.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney, together with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, knew when they filed their charges that Palmer-Stewart were in a cat fight with Vonderplanitz. Piling charges on Palmer-Stewart while leaving Vonderplanitz unscathed would only intensify the bitterness of the feud that had developed.
So overjoyed were the government enforcers with the execution of the divide-and-conquer strategy that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration tried to get in on the legal act, offering to bring the U.S. Justice Department in to explore adding federal charges on top of the dozens of state charges filed in August 2011. No need to do that, Kelly Sakir, the assistant L.A. County District Attorney in charge of the Rawesome case, told FDA officials. The situation was well in hand in terms of piling on charges. It was like shooting sitting ducks, and to bring in the feds might make the slaughter taking place ridiculous even by vindictive government standards.
So the officials just left the Rawesome principals to go at it, with vindictively accusatory emails, a vicious web site, and even civil legal suits, such as the suit and counter suit described by Victoria Bloch involving Vonderplanitz-Larry Otting and Palmer-Stewart. Even today, a number of us are drawn to take sides in the internal bickering that was going on at Rawesome. And the government officials just kind of wiped the dirt off their collective hands and walked away from the fights they ignited, with big smiles plastered across their collective faces.
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The power of loyal customers has helped rescue a small northern California meat producer from possible extinction by power-happy regulators in Los Angeles County–at least temporarily. The Los Angeles County Department of Environmental Health, the same agency that helped initiate legal action against Rawesome Food Club in 2010, has been after Lindner Bison, a popular seller of bison meat at the Hollywood and Santa Monica farmers markets for many years.
Heres how Kathy and Ken Lindner, the owners, explained what happened: After ten years of trying to find affordable cold storage in L.A. County, on Sunday 7/14 Lindner Bison was banned from selling in farmers markets. Verny Grajeda, the inspector issuing the ban, must personally approve any new storage location. Until he does, Lindner bison cannot sell in LA farmers markets. Further Mr. Grajeda has indicated legal action against Lindner Bison.
As a two-person company with a spotless quality and public safety record, and impeccable reputation, Lindner Bison uses interim commercial chest freezers that we’ve been told by Environmental Health meet county requirements. If the freezers were on the ranch and we brought our meat directly to each market from our ranch, 12 hours (600 miles) away, though impossible this too would meet county requirements. Most of the meat is in an affordable state licensed facility in Bakersfield, Kern County. For interim storage, L.A. County regulations state the meat must be in a county approved storage facility.
What is ‘an approved facility?’ It’s hard to say. The question has been asked and the answer seems to be ‘pay the fee, submit your plans and we’ll get back to you.’ Since April we’ve worked with someone who has done just that. Over $800 non-refundable license fees and countless resubmittals later, he gave up saying the latest requirement was installing a floor drain and creating a painted ceiling where a flourescent light and ceiling panels exist. This just to place four self-contained commercial chest freezers in a warehouse office space. In frustration he abandoned the effort.
A ten-year search for space in existing approved facilities has also proven fruitless. Not only are they cost prohibitive for a small company like us, but without weekend access, precisely when we need them. Compounding the issue is that county regulations are clearly written for commercial sized food distribution companies, making it virtually impossible for any small business to become established, much less get started. Though Lindner Bison has repeatedly explained the requirements are impossible for us to afford, no solutions, compromise or help has even been offered. This includes any recommendations of an approved facility that met their requirements and ours. They know nothing exists.
Enough people called and emailed the Los Angeles County Department of Environmental Health that the agency yesterday gave the Lindners a reprieve, until August 1, to try to come up with a solution. Thats not much, and its unclear whether the agency is willing to be more flexible about developing a solution, or whether supporters of the Lindners will need to make their will known, once again. You can follow the Lindners progress on their Facebook page. Should supporters need to contact county and state officials, contact info will be posted there.
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Somehow, most discussions about food rights seem to return to a debate about the safety of raw milk. I just wrote an analysis of the emerging food rights movement, published at Alternet, and I pointed to an erosion of confidence in the American food system as a driving force, encouraging people to seek out private food sources, outside the regulated system.
And sure enough, much of the considerable discussion following the article is about raw milk and whether we should be allowed to drink it.
Our strategy continues to be to avoid breaking the law by maintaining the strict privacy of our herd. And then we self-regulate with extremely high standards. Our milk test this week (done voluntarily) came back with an SPC of under 500, and a Coliform count once again of 0. I am not afraid of quality standards. In fact, I’d LOVE to be evaluated for quality. That is where the small farm can shine and COMPETE with the big guys. Bring it, I say. Let the inspectors inspect us for quality. I think this is the way ALL food safety should be. Testable standards. Lets make all producers produce high quality food that is free from pathogens. Lets verify that with testing that is local and affordable. It can be done. And then, lets allow local farmers to be innovative in their production methods. If I can milk a cow in my garage, and the milk is consistantly clean, why does it matter?
Ora, I think it’s important we not be afraid of their monitoring our posts. In fact, we should get in the habit of answering them, letting them know we know they are listening and reading, and telling them know where we think they can stuff what they find.
It is my hope that he LA county health regulators read this post. In the LA area…I have yet to meet a county health department inspector or investigator that was not borderline retarded and broadly ignorant. They are mostly new immigrant “followers” with out a working brain cell. True simpletons. In fact it is damn hard to even understand their broken English. Many years ago, we were pounded by them…my response has been a visit to their offices and a mandatory meeting with their bosses. Their bosses do have a few brain cells and it is very embarrassing for them to see what their subordinates are ignorantly doing. I have always immediately complied with their reasonable demands and document absolutely everything. The name of the game is ….take it to them ….before they take it to you!!!
Never ever take the word or citation of the low lying idiot they send out to harass you….take it up higher much much higher and hold them to the actual regulations…not their ridiculous interpretation of what they may think or feel. It has been my experience that rarely they know their own regs…much less the state of CA regs. I have been told many times at farmers markets that raw milk is illegal to sell….what do I do? I ask them who their boss is and call immediately for a meeting with them. I hand their heads back to them on a silver plate and never fail to remind them that denial of my rights as a CA farmer will land then personally in very hot legal water. Do not take any bullshit from these jokers. Push back hard and they tend to realize and respect that they will get the same serious treatment each and every time they attempt to harass raw milk or our business and most importantly….or our dear customers. Their is nothing like taking a very strong, respectful and knowledgable stand and back them off. Every time!!! Never give them a quarter inch!!! If you do they proudly attempt to stand on your throat.
what it is aint exactly clear
i think it’s time we stop, children
what’s that sound
everybody look what’s going down
there’s battle lines being drawn
nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjSpO2B6G4s
http://www.lyricsfreak.com/b/buffalo+springfield/stop+hey+whats+that+sound_20641646.html
Why should we have to suffer the stupidity / outright hostility of racial aliens, while they take a generation to learn the manners of this place?
No small co-incidence – again – that the main actor in our trouble here in BC, was Fraser Health Authority’s mananger Tim Shum. Having grown up in Red China, it would have been impossible for him to advance to the level where he could get educated, then leave for Canada, without having been a member of the Communist party. In that culture, raw milk is considered a filthy excressence. Ironically, when I put in a Freedom of Information demand for his credentials, I was told (in no uncertain language) that such a request would NOT be complied-with, on the grounds that I raised the ‘race’ factor. Of course no-one wants to hear about the “r’ word in all this, but it will be revealed that the raw milk issue is part of the overall Culture War against white Christians… and that sure isn’t happening by accident.
One great raw milk dairy at a time. This is a track record of safety being created as well all watch time go by. Hard work and great efforts should be recognized.
If any interested producer or consumer of raw milk would like to attend the first RAWMI food safety webinar, it is free and will be held Thursday July 25th aty 1800 hours PST. See the RAW Milk Institute website for details. The subject matter is “farm biosecurity” for raw milk producers. The guest presenter will be Dr. Cat Berge PhD, DVM.
Good job Shawna!!
Mark McAfee
RAWMI
This is completely off topic…but it is super cool and very green.
I was at Harris Ranch today and saw the coolest thing ever!!! I saw six Tesla electric cars charging at the super fast electrical charging station that is located in their restaurant parking lot. The cost to fuel up in 45 min ( charge for about 250 miles of driving at 80 mph ) was free…that is right…no charge to charge up. One of the drivers shared with me that he drove from Seattle to LA and back on zero cost for power….all recharges were free of charge. Tesla comes with life time free power if recharged at the Tesla charging stations. As a child I always dreamed of zero emissions green cars that are quiet, fast and efficient. They are here!! I know….what about where the power comes from to charge the cars…just down the street farmers have installed acres of solar panels because water is beng sent to LA to flush toilets. Now water is costing $700 per acre foot in the west side of the San Joaquin and farm land is going dry and unfarmed. Water runs everything….we have serious problems with water…not its availability….it’s distribution. Just 700 miles north of our parched San Joaquin….the world overflows with water. Some day mankind will begin to figure out that water does not come from a faucet and grow some balls to build some distribution systems. Then America can build jobs and feed itself much better. Just like food coming from stores….water does not come from faucets. We have serious pain coming…pain is the only thing that seems to cause change.
Until then. Love that Tesla and zero emissions from solar farms….
Mark, thanks for the report on Tesla charging stations. Amazing stuff. I’ve also read that Tesla is running into legal trouble in some states–existing dealerships don’t like the fact that Teslas are being sold direct to consumers, without dealerships. Sounds familiar, kind of like food sovereignty. Any time you rock the status quo, you can be sure the existing power structure will push back.
Big Oil killed the electric car 30 years ago…and look who benefited the most. It was the car producers that cornered the market along with their high priced oil guzzlers and distribution systems. We would not have fought at least two wars that I know of if it had not been for oil. Electrical solar energy flows down on earth in all places ( well not quite but you get the point )….it is an equal opportunity fuel.
It has been said that an Arab great grand father rode a camel and so will his great great grand children. Oil is a short term medium….longer term it is wind solar and other sustainable sources. Nothing new here. But what is new is the guts to execute change. The Tesla driver that I met at Harris Ranch was one hell of a guy. He was eager to teach and share his experiences and was damn proud of the fact that his gorgeous car had no gas tank, emissions what so ever and no tale pipe. I love great change~!!
As the fictional permanent secretary Sir Humphrey Appleby once said: If you ask me for a straight answer, then I shall say that, as far as we can see, looking at it by and large, taking one thing with another in terms of the average of departments, then in the final analysis it is probably true to say, that at the end of the day, in general terms, you would probably find that, not to put too fine a point on it, there probably wasn’t very much in it one way or the other.
The truth is out there somewhere, so keep your eyes and ears peeled and a clear open mind. Bias defies growth.
Another thing that made an impression on me was the increasing of community gardens/mini-farms sprouting up all over the city and neighborhoods!! Wow, this is so exciting to see! Many of them have a small stand and a sign listing the day of the week when produce is available, as well as, other hand-crafted food goods such as pickles, fermented foods, jams/jellies, freshly harvested raw honey and so on, it is mind boggeling! This is one of the perks of my traveling, to be able to see the efforts towards real food, food freedom, sustainability and local sourcing and how it is catching on and growing. Now I know that Portland is just one small port in the storm, but it is a start and it is an example to many other cities/towns throughout the U.S. Yes, the work is still vast, but it is happening and with everyone pulling together, it just might make a real change that will spread throughout this country. I must say this experience this week was a great reward after a busy, fast-paced two weeks!! I only wish that I had had my camera with me on this trip!!
Deborah, thanks for the report. The increase in family farms you noticed is going on in the East as well, with lots of young people starting up farms or taking over family farms. There’s even a farmer networking group in the Boston area:
http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/food-dining/2013/07/23/young-farmers-night-offers-networking-potluck-dinners/LTXKXzza5ZcbkllCce7UzI/story.html