Government raids on farms across the USA!

[Paul Mobbs]

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA256

Seem that local and national law enforcement in the USA are regularly raiding 
farms across America. What for?: Drugs?; Illegal immigrants?; Banned 
chemicals? NO -- THEY'RE LOOKING FOR REAL FOOD!!

You really couldn't write this stuff as a comedy skit -- it would be too 
absurd! The sad thing is that in such matter the UK tends to be only a short 
period behind policy in the US.


P.



http://www.grist.org/article/food-five-tips-for-surviving-a-raid-on-your-farm-
or-food-club

Raids are increasing on farms and private food-supply clubs—here are 5 tips 
for surviving one

David Gumpert, Grist Magazine, 14th July 2010


When the 20 agents arrived bearing a search warrant at her Ventura County 
farmhouse door at 7 a.m. on a Wednesday a couple weeks back, Sharon Palmer 
didn't know what to say. This was the third time she was being raided in 18 
months, and she had thought she was on her way to resolving the problem over 
labeling of her goat cheese that prompted the other two raids. (In addition to 
producing goat's milk, she raises cattle, pigs, and chickens, and makes the 
meat available via a CSA.)

But her 12-year-old daughter, Jasmine, wasn't the least bit tongue-tied. "She 
started back-talking to them," recalls Palmer. "She said, 'If you take my 
computer again, I can't do my homework.' This would be the third computer we 
will have lost. I still haven't gotten the computers back that they took in 
the previous two raids."

As part of a five-hour-plus search of her barn and home, the agents -- from the 
Los Angeles County District Attorney's office, Los Angeles County Sheriff, 
Ventura County Sheriff, and the California Department of Food and Agriculture 
- -- took the replacement computer, along with milk she feeds her chickens and 
pigs.
 
While no one will say officially what the purpose of this latest raid was, aside 
from being part of an investigation in progress, what is very clear is that 
government raids of producers, distributors, and even consumers of 
nutritionally dense foods appear to be happening ever more frequently. 
Sometimes they are meant to counter raw dairy production, other times to 
challenge private food organizations over whether they should be licensed as 
food retailers.

The same day Sharon Palmer's farm was raided, there was a raid on Rawesome 
Foods, a Venice, Calif., private food club run by nutritionist and raw-food 
advocate Aajonus Vonderplanitz. For a membership fee of $25, consumers can 
purchase unpasteurized dairy products, eggs that are not only organic but 
unwashed, and a wide assortment of fermented vegetables and other products.

The main difference in the two raids seems to be that Palmer's raiding party 
was actually much smaller, about half the size of the Venice contingent: 
Vonderplanitz was also visited by the FBI and the FDA.

In the Rawesome raid, agents made off with several thousand dollars worth of 
raw honey and raw dairy products. They also shut Rawesome for failure to have 
a public health permit, though the size and scope of the raid suggests the 
government officials might have more in mind. Regardless, within hours the 
outlet reopened in defiance of the shutdown order.

{snip}



- -- 

"We are not for names, nor men, nor titles of Government,
nor are we for this party nor against the other but we are
for justice and mercy and truth and peace and true freedom,
that these may be exalted in our nation, and that goodness,
righteousness, meekness, temperance, peace and unity with
God, and with one another, that these things may abound."
(Edward Burrough, 1659 - from 'Quaker Faith and Practice')

Paul's book, "Energy Beyond Oil", is out now!
For details see http://www.fraw.org.uk/ebo/

Read my message board, "Ecolonomics", at:
http://www.fraw.org.uk/mei/ecolonomics/

Paul Mobbs, Mobbs' Environmental Investigations
3 Grosvenor Road, Banbury OX16 5HN, England
tel./fax (+44/0)1295 261864
email - mobbsey at gn.apc.org
website - http://www.fraw.org.uk/mei/index.shtml
public key - http://www.fraw.org.uk/mei/mobbsey-2010.asc
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v2.0.13 (GNU/Linux)

iF4EAREIAAYFAkxGnm4ACgkQ5Jsrc2qDL5GJpwEAp5Zg5GGDe3xZWat+24vVmju3
JsNdob8iHFyltfsJA0IA/3haH7WdXBCuDeuoLOzFZzx9WAd8roY0SNPqTuKEAq0s
=+myF
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----