¡Join the fight!
In Eau Claire, Wisconsin, yesterday, four-hundred and fifty people showed up to offer 10 hours of testimony on state bills that would legalize the sale of raw milk in the Dairy State.
According to WSAU Radio in Wausau, "scientists, government officials, consumers, and farmers were among those testifying," and apparently the pros outnumbered the cons in the audience. The pro raw milk side was organized in large part by dairy farmer Vince Hundt, who bought a ton of paper hats for supporters of the legislation. Read more...
The raw milk fight has been heating up over the last year, with various states moving to legalize sales of raw milk. Raw milk dairy farmer Michael Schmidt's fight and win in Canada has certainly been encouraging to raw milk enthusiasts, and the publication of David Gumpert's Raw Milk Revolution, seems to have turned up the heat under the raw milk story, too.
But if I were looking for bigger watershed moments that mightactually change national opinion (or spark a deeper conversation), I'd watch the raw milk legalization debate in Wisconsin right now. Read more...
Wisconsin has okayed creation of the largest CAFO in the state.
Rosendale Dairy, which we've reported about before, has been issued a permit by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, allowing it to expand its herd from 4000 to 8000 head, making the largest CAFO in Wisconsin. Read more...
Like the rest of America's dairy industry, Wisconsin's has consolidated greatly over the last generation -- with the number of farms decreasing and the average size increasing -- but dairyman Jim Ostrom would like to take it a step further by expanding his operation, Rosendale Dairy, from 4000 to 8000 head, making it the largest CAFO in the state.
On December 1 concerned Wisconsin residents peacefully gathered in support of family farmers and in protest against factory farms at the Dairy Business Association’s (DBA) conference in downtown Madison. Most demonstrators hailed from Vernon County and Crawford County, with additional participants from the Madison Area. The DBA’s stated mission is to promote the growth and success of all dairy farms in the state by fostering a positive business and political environment. Demonstrators argued that the organization actually works for the aggressive expansion of factory farming in Wisconsin, to the detriment of small and medium-scale family farmers, rural communities and environmental health. Read more...
Below is the publicly released statement from the group dubbing itself In Defense of Farmers (more here), which is calling for a show of solidarity with conventional farmers at Michael Pollan's talk tomorrow night at the Kohl Center in Madison, WI.Their reasons for this are outlined below, and the group will also be handing out free t-shirts at the event.
(Thanks to the UW-Madison student newspaper, The Badger Herald, for forwarding a copy to Fair Food Fight.)
In Defense of Farming
Eat food. Be healthy. Thank farmers.
A Call to Action Read more...
I want to flag a very weird little piece in Feedstuffs, a weekly Big Ag trade mag, that caught my eye this weekend: "Farmers unite in response to Pollan appearance at University of Wisconsin this week." Read more...
Your loyal Fair Food Fighter El Dragón went to the Dane County Farmers Market (DCFM) in Madison, WI, over Memorial Day weekend in May, and for an Upper Midwest event in mid-spring, this market really rocked. One expects to see lots of bread, honey, and cheese (especially in Wisconsin), but farmers were also offering tomatoes, lettuce, mushrooms, and plenty of other fresh, green produce items as well. It's a weekly market, and a real labor of love. You can just feel it as you circle Madison's Washington-esque capitol and take in all the farmers' goods. Read more...
Here's a great perspective on what's wrong with building a CAFO (confined animal feeding operation) in your vicinity (WKBT La Crosse)
"Cows produce between 18 and 20 times the amount of waste as humans. This proposed operation is going to be 3,200 cows. If you do the math, that equates to the same amount of waste [a] city the size of 50,000 people would produce," said Ryan Call, a concerned citizen in Wesby [Wisconsin]. Read more...
