Tag: usda

Amish Farmer Faces Fines, Prison Time for Refusing to Comply with USDA Regulations

For nearly 30 years, Amos Miller has owned and operated Miller’s Organic Farm, an all-natural Amish farm located in Bird-in-Hand Pennsylvania. Like many Amish farmers, Miller likes to do things the old-fashioned way. He doesn’t use electricity, fertilizer, or gasoline, and he also stays away from modern preservatives.

The farm’s reputation has grown over the years, and it now boasts a private buyers club of approximately 4,000 members. Miller has sold all sorts of food to his buyers, such as organic eggs, raw milk, grass-fed beef and cheese, and fresh produce.

“They use it as a medicine,” Miller said in a 2021 interview. “It’s very healing to the body because it’s raw.”

“They’re good people,” said one of his customers. “Their place is very clean, and their produce is excellent.”

In recent years, however, the farm has found itself in the crosshairs of the US Department of Agriculture because of its failure to comply with federal farming regulations.

It all started in 2016, when two listeriosis illnesses that occured in 2014 were traced back to raw milk sold by Miller’s Organic Farm. Both infected people had to be hospitalized, and one tragically died from the illness.

The USDA has been trying to bring the farm into compliance with federal regulations ever since, but it’s been a long hard series of court battles, in part because Miller has been, by his own admission, less than fully co-operative with the government. Miller is facing fines and jail time for his actions.

The story reached a climax in March of this year when a federal judge ordered Miller to cease and desist all meat sales and authorized armed US marshals to use “reasonable force” to gain access to Miller’s farm so a court expert could inspect it. The expert—accompanied by the armed marshals—took an inventory of all Miller’s meat, and federal inspectors are now returning every few months to make sure he hasn’t sold any of it.

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USDA using unreliable PCR testing to “depopulate” poultry farms, crippling the U.S. food supply

“Out of an abundance of caution,” the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been “depopulating” poultry farms whenever a hen tests positive for avian influenza. These government-enforced depopulation schemes target millions of egg-laying hens, decimating large flocks of harmless animals.

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development recently reported that a few birds tested positive for avian influenza at a major Michigan poultry facility. The birds at this facility were put under quarantine and scheduled to be killed, en masse. Herbruck’s Poultry Ranch recently had a few hens test positive at their Green Meadow Organics facility, and entire flocks will be culled because of it. This is an issue that is occurring at greater frequency across the country. PCR fallibility and disease pandemonium allows government agencies to cull entire flocks, driving food price inflation and putting the food supply at risk.

Overzealous laws allow USDA to cull millions of harmless animals

Factory farms are notorious for raising chickens in unhealthy, crowded environments that do not consider the holistic health of the animals. This often causes the chickens to become more susceptible to sickness and more likely to spread infections. The animals are not allowed to roam freely and develop proper immunity to the pathogens in their environment. These animals are often subject to conditions, drugs and vaccines that further weaken their ability to adapt to disease. Instead of allowing chicken populations to gain natural immunity, the government depopulates entire flocks and puts the next generation of chickens at greater risk, due to waning herd immunity from generation to generation.

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USDA Says Genetically Modified Hemp Plant ‘May Be Safely Grown And Bred’ In The United States

A hemp plant genetically engineered to produce lower levels of the cannabinoids THC and cannabichromene (CBC) “may be safely grown and bred in the United States,” the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced.

The hemp plant was genetically modified and submitted for review by Growing Together Research, a biotechnology firm headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The company announced earlier this year that it had achieved “the first known stable transformation and regeneration of multiple THC-free hemp cultivars” and in June announced it would work to increase THC production in cannabis plants.

“We reviewed the modified hemp plant to determine whether it posed an increased plant pest risk as compared to cultivated hemp,” USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) said in a notice last week. “APHIS found this modified hemp is unlikely to pose an increased plant pest risk compared to other cultivated hemp.”

It its request for the USDA review, Growing Together Research said the changes are intended to make the engineered plants free of THC and CBC and also boost resistance to the herbicide bialaphos. It says genes in the new hemp plants came from multiple donor organisms, including plants, bacteria, a virus and at least one artificial sequence.

The company said in the request that it believes the intended resistance to the herbicide “is not expected to result in any other material changes to metabolism, physiology or development of the plant.”

The APHIS review focused on whether the new hemp plant poses a “plant pest risk.” The process, according to the agency, “examines the plant pests and diseases that are known to be associated with a commodity, identifies those pests that are likely to remain on the commodity upon importation into the United States, and evaluates the mitigations that may be required to avoid, reduce, or eliminate the risk of pest introduction into the United States.”

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USDA Releases New Hemp Handbook As Agency Works To Rebuild A Post-Prohibition Seed Bank

As the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) works to rebuild a government seed bank for hemp that was destroyed during prohibition, the agency is issuing updated guidance on how to identify, describe and evaluate different varieties of the plant.

USDA’s latest version of its Hemp Descriptor and Phenotyping Handbook, released earlier this summer, is the agency’s deepest dive yet into the different forms and qualities of hemp. Intended to help researchers better differentiate between hemp varieties, the new document includes all sorts of details on the morphology, yield, cannabinoid content, oil production, seed viability, fiber quality, pathogen resistance and various other traits.

The eventual goal is to allow users of the genetic repository, including hemp scientists and breeders, to more fully understand the range of hemp varieties and and select them for various applications.

As USDA puts it, “Robust, reliable and high-dimensional data generated from these phenotyping efforts will empower conservation of hemp genetic diversity and aid selection of materials with unique trait combinations for breeding programs.”

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The USDA’s War on Small Farms

Most students in America are introduced to the writings of Upton Sinclair. While they aren’t shown his incredible cover-up of the Holodomor or his other Soviet apologisms, they are presented with his most famous work: The Jungle. This work tells the tale of Sinclair’s investigation into the wretched working conditions of the meat-packers of its age. Between lost limbs and failed inspections, Sinclair writes about the meat being contaminated and barbarously prepared.

This tale is meant to show the supposed failures of laissez-faire capitalism, with its disregard for workers and health. Readers are supposed to walk away with a firm belief in the need for the regulation of these firms. Hurrah! Here comes the mighty state to provide safety to the masses that would otherwise be made sick by crony corporations. That’s far from the truth.

Murray Rothbard himself documents in The Progressive Era the truth of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulation. Rothbard observed that nearly every inspection passed in any form of legislature or bureaucracy was fueled by protectionism from existing firms. These regulations were not there to provide “safety” to consumers but rather to keep competition out of the marketplace by fiat. Rothbard states that the only meaningful definition of monopoly is an exclusive legal right granted by the state. Perhaps then, the only meaningful definition of so-called monopoly powers is a firm’s ability to push regulation that harms their competition through the state.

Even today, the USDA—and its regulations—threaten to crush small farmers under its heel. A small hobby farm, or even one that simply isn’t a factory farm, can hardly stand up to the regulations.

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UPSIDE Foods Granted USDA Label Approval for Cultivated Meat and Moves One Step Closer to Commercialization

 UPSIDE Foods, the leading cultivated meat, poultry and seafood company, announced today that it obtained label approval for its cultivated chicken from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). With an approved label in hand, UPSIDE Foods is now working with USDA to obtain a Grant of Inspection (GOI) for its Engineering, Production, and Innovation Center (EPIC), the last remaining item in the pre-market regulatory process before the company can commercially produce and sell its cultivated chicken in the United States. The label uses the term “cell-cultivated chicken.”

As a cultivated meat product grown directly from real animal cells, UPSIDE’s Chicken is subject to the same labeling requirements as conventionally-produced meat products. UPSIDE Foods has now demonstrated full compliance with all pre-market requirements for labeling and can begin commercial production and sales as soon as it obtains a GOI from USDA. UPSIDE’s chicken will proudly bear the USDA mark of inspection on its packaging after it passes USDA inspection.

“The USDA’s approval of our label marks a major step forward towards our goal of creating a more humane and sustainable food system,” said Dr. Uma Valeti, CEO and Founder of UPSIDE Foods. “We’re excited to continue working with the USDA to achieve our next milestone: a Grant of Inspection (GOI) for our facility. Obtaining the USDA’s GOI will clear the way for commercial production and sales and allow us to bring our delicious UPSIDE chicken to consumers for the first time.”

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Doctor Who Claimed Obesity Can’t Be Treated With Diet and Exercise Tapped for Role in USDA’s Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee

Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, who specializes in obesity medicine at Mass General Health in Boston, has been appointed to the Biden’s Administration’s USDA panel which determines diet guidelines.

USDA announced the appointment of 20 nationally recognized scientists to serve on the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (the Committee).

According to the release, “The Committee will be tasked with reviewing the current body of science on key nutrition topics and developing a scientific report that includes its independent assessment of the evidence and recommendations for HHS and USDA as they develop the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The Committee’s review, public comments, and input from other federal nutrition experts will help inform HHS and USDA as the Departments develop the 10th edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.”

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USDA Now Asking People to Register Their Vegetable Gardens for National Database

In a move that has many folks scratching their heads, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has renewed its push for the People’s Garden Initiative which now includes registering vegetable gardens nationwide. According to the USDA, the move is to foster a “more diverse and resilient local food system to empower communities to address issues like nutrition access and climate change.” But those who have been following the USDA closely for years know that they couldn’t care less about your health and nutrition.

To register your garden with the USDA, one must meet several easily obtainable standards.

School gardens, community gardens, urban farms, and small-scale agriculture projects in rural, suburban and urban areas can be recognized as a “People’s Garden” if they register on the USDA website and meet criteria including benefitting the community, working collaboratively, incorporating conservation practices and educating the public.

These standards essentially define every community garden in the country. Now, the government organization that shells out billions every year to companies whose products, like high-fructose corn syrup, are responsible for a massive epidemic of obesity across the planet, will have a database of them.

“We welcome gardens nationwide to join us in the People’s Garden effort and all it represents,” said Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, “Local gardens across the country share USDA’s goals of building more diversified and resilient local food systems, empowering communities to come together around expanding access to healthy food, addressing climate change and advancing equity.”

Secretary Vilsack added: “We encourage existing gardens and new gardens to join the movement. Growing local food benefits local communities in so many ways, and we offer technical resources to help. Also, it’s a great way to connect with your local USDA team members.”

Again, it is important to point out that the mission statement of the USDA does not involve anything to do with keeping Americans healthy. In fact, their track record over the years has done the complete opposite.

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Following USDA Guidance, State Clinics Destroyed Thousands of Cans of Usable Baby Formula

Amid a national shortage of baby formula, family care centers in at least two states discarded thousands of cans of unopened, unexpired baby formula—because state and federal officials said so.

Guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in November 2019 advises clinics run by state-level Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) programs to “dispose of unused, returned…infant formula.” Formula might be returned for a number of reasons: parents might decide to switch brands at the recommendation of a doctor or due to an infant’s allergic reaction, or they might simply not use all they’ve been given. When that happens, clinics are told to discard the returned formula—even if it is not expired.

“Unused, returned infant formula may have been inappropriately stored (e.g., exposed to extremely high temperatures), may be past its use-by-date, or subjected to tampering (e.g., labels or use-by dates changed),” the USDA advisory reads, in part. The same memo also warns against “donating unused, returned WIC infant formula to entities such as food banks or food pantries.”

Apparently taking that memo to heart, WIC centers in Georgia have reportedly destroyed at least 16,459 cans of baby formula since October of last year, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which first reported on the frustrating policy last month.

The state also banned donations of formula to food banks and other locations. As a result, Georgia was “throwing formula down the sink,” Vanesa Sarazua, founder of the Hispanic Alliance of Georgia, a nonprofit, told the paper. “I mean, talk about waste.”

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Food Price Inflation Getting Worse, Farming on Idle Land Disallowed Due to Climate Goals: USDA

In March, several agricultural groups—including the American Bakers Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, and Agricultural Retailers Association—wrote to the USDA (pdf), requesting that farming be allowed on idle land under the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). About 26 percent of CRP acres are classified as prime farmland.

However, the USDA rejected the request, insisting that such a move would harm climate goals (pdf).

“It is critical to point out that if we allow the tillage of CRP acres, the marginal at best benefit to crop production will be coupled with a significant and detrimental impact on producers’ efforts to mitigate climate change and maintain the long-term health of their land,” the agency said in its response.

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