Over 40
farmers from Illinois and Indiana traveled to a meeting sponsored
by the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment in Jasper,
IN to discuss several federal farm issues with family livestock
producers.
The meeting focused on passing a federal ban on packer ownership
of livestock. The packer ban was recently reintroduced in
the United States Senate and the House of Representatives.
Over the last 10 years, giant corporate meatpackers have been steadily
increasing their control over the country’s livestock markets
by raising their own livestock for slaughter and shutting family
farmers out of the marketplace. Moreover, corporate controlled livestock
production usually takes place in giant factory farms that
pollute the environment of rural America and force family farmers
out of business.
Family farmers from Southwest Indiana and Eastern Illinois came
together at the meeting to demand their representatives pass a ban
on packer ownership of livestock as the most important step towards
reclaiming open and competitive markets for independent family farmers.
One hundred letters were generated to federal representatives encouraging
their support of federal legislation to ban packer ownership of
livestock.
Farmers demanded immediate changes to the current direction of federal
farm policy, specifically calling for passage of legislation
that would prevent packers from owning their own cattle or hogs.
“If we want food security for this nation, family farmers
should be raising our food, not giant, corporate controlled, factory
farms,” said Robert Webster, a Indiana family farmer and a
Citizens Action Coalition member, who spoke at the meeting.
Other issues discussed included legislation that would require country
of origin labeling of all fresh fruits and vegetables and fresh
meats in the grocery store meat case. The farmers spoke in
favor of this legislation as it would give consumers more choices
and information about where there food comes from.
The law says that only meat that is born raised and slaughtered
in the U.S. could have a “Produced in the U.S.”
label.
Member groups of the Campaign for family farms include: Citizens
Action Coalition of Indiana, Illinois Stewardship Alliance, Iowa
Citizens for Community Improvement, Missouri Rural Crisis Center,
and Land Stewardship Project (MN).
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