Being Politically Active… For Once

Below you will find the letter I’m sending to my representatives in Congress! Look at me taking political action! It’s sheer madness! Part of it is a form letter that can be found at Grassfed on the Hill with my own thoughts added in the middle. I highly encourage you to send your own. You can find out about HR 1830 here.

Dear Representative/Senator________,

Please support HR 1830—the Unpasteurized Milk Bill, which would allow farmers to legally transport fresh, unprocessed milk across state lines. The FDA is actively prosecuting farmers who have chosen to provide fresh milk to out of state individuals via private, contractual relationships.

Ideally I would like to buy my milk and the rest of my foods from my neighbors here on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, but as a state regulation makes the sale or distribution of fresh milk, even through cow shares, illegal in the state of Maryland, I have been forced to instead spend my money in Pennsylvania in order to have access to one of the foods that I value. I obtain milk from Pennsylvania through a private relationship that myself and 1000 other families throughout Maryland have with an Amish farmer who is able to provide us all with fresh farm products from his herd of 40 grass fed cows. I not only enjoy the foods from this farm, but rely on them for my health, and would trust very few others to provide such high quality foods. We each have a personal relationship with this farmer, have visited the farm, and have educated ourselves about the accompanying risks and benefits of consuming fresh milk and other farm products- and have decided that this is what’s best for ourselves and our families.

Despite this, the FDA is currently prosecuting our farmer, and aims to prevent us from obtaining the milk that rightfully belongs to all the members of our buying club. This comes after a year long investigation of the 40 cow Amish farm mentioned above. I would much rather see the FDA spend my tax dollars investigating large scale industrial processors that sicken far more people, rather than waste their time and my money investigating a small scale Amish farmer that has not sickened a single person.

HR 1830 is an important piece of legislation that will make it legal for farmers to sell the fresh milk they produce to consumers who want it. When consumers choose to engage in direct relationships with farmers that they know and trust, they provide their own oversight over the quality of their purchases. Consumers have a right to hand-pick the foods they trust from the producers they trust. This trust-based relationship between farmers and consumers directly supports and revitalizes America’s rural economies.

Please co-sponsor HR 1830 so that small farmers may continue to supply their customers with fresh milk without having to worry about FDA raids that shut down their farms and businesses.

Thank you for your time and consideration of this issue.

Sincerely,

me!