Maine Town Becomes First in US to Declare Food Sovereignty

[sailingaway]

The town of Sedgwick, Maine, population 1,012 (according to the 2000 census), has become the first town in the United States to pass a Food Sovereignty ordinance. In doing so, the town declared their right to produce and sell local foods of their choosing, without the oversight of State or federal regulation.

What does this mean? In the debate over raw milk, for example, the law opens the gate for consumer and producer to enter a purchasing agreement without interference from state or federal health regulators. According to the Mayo Clinic, a 1987 FDA regulation required that all milk be pasteurized to kill pathogens such as salmonella and E. coli. The Sedgwick ordinance declares that:

Producers or processors of local foods in the Town of Sedgwick are exempt from licensure and inspection provided that the transaction is only between the producer or processor and a patron when the food is sold for home consumption. This includes any producer or processor who sells his or her products at farmers’ markets or roadside stands; sells his or her products through farm-based sales directly to a patron; or delivers his or her products directly to patrons.

In short, the ordinance allows buyer and seller to enter their own agreement which overrides the regulation of government when dealing with transactions involving local foods.

This four page ordinance, which can be read in its entirety here, is revolutionary in that it relies on the consumer to educate themselves on the risk of consuming products (such as raw milks, cheeses, meats and vegetables), and shifts the power away from regulation, which prevents people from eating food of their choosing.

How does the ordinance accomplish this? It references three key documents:

The United States Constitution, which declares that the government derives its power from the consent of the governed (in this case, the governed want their raw milk and local meat!)
The Maine Constitution, and in particular Article I, § 2, which declares that all power of government is inherent in the people, who may alter, change or reform it if their happiness requires (again, raw milk = happy people!) and;
The Maine Revised Statutes and in particular §3001 of Title 30-A which grants municipalities the right to regulate health, safety, and welfare (which will sound familiar to urban planners) and §211 of Title 7 which states “it is the policy of the State to encourage food self-sufficiency for the State.”
This is huge news, and Grown in the City will be tracking the story in various ways in the coming weeks.

interesting: http://sustainablecitiescollective.com/growninthecity/22295/maine-town-passes-local-food-and-community-self-governance-ordinance-becomes-fi

[Carson]

Good news.

[dinosaur]

great idea

[presence]

City by city, town by town we need to take this country back.

[The Goat]

And lady liberty smiled.

[tod evans]

This is fantastic!

[Thor]

I read the 3 documents referenced to "allow" this, but I still ask.... what will stop Federal Stormtroopers from raiding these businesses?

[tod evans]

I read the 3 documents referenced to "allow" this, but I still ask.... what will stop Federal Stormtroopers from raiding these businesses?

A duly elected sheriff..

[Zippyjuan]

I first read "food soverignty" to mean self- sufficiency -that they would not import any food from outside their region- and was wondering how you could do that in Maine which is not a climate you can grow all the food you need year-round.

[Keith and stuff]

I read the 3 documents referenced to "allow" this, but I still ask.... what will stop Federal Stormtroopers from raiding these businesses?

Nothing will stop the federal or state police from raiding them. As for raw milk, though, the federal government doesn't seem to get involved with that unless something else is involved, like crossing state lines. Where I live, raw milk is sold in grocery stores and at people's houses. I doubt the federal government will care at all about anyone in Sedgwick selling milk. ME let's people sell raw milk too so I doubt that will be a major issue, either.


I first read "food soverignty" to mean self- sufficiency -that they would not import any food from outside their region- and was wondering how you could do that in Maine which is not a climate you can grow all the food you need year-round.
Of course, people could grow all of their own food in Maine. It is the kind of thing that has happened for 100s of years.

[TheTexan]

Hell ya this is how its done.

And yes the stormtroopers can invade and force compliance, but the more they do that the more they lose legitimacy

[BAllen]

Hell ya this is how its done.

And yes the stormtroopers can invade and force compliance, but the more they do that the more they lose legitimacy

They only have to make a bust once in awhile, and the reputation will do the rest for them. Carries the same weight as blackmail.

[otherone]

What I find compelling about their argument is that it calls upon the power of the "people" in broad language sighting both the state and US constitutions. These arguments are easily transferable to a host of other nullification issues. This will be fun to watch.

[Created4]

This is old news. It happened over 2 years ago. There is a current test case going through the courts now with a farmer with a single cow providing raw milk to just a few families. Here is an update, but even this is almost 1 year ago now:

http://healthimpactnews.com/2012/local-food-sovereignty-laws-in-maine-come-to-a-test-with-farmer-brown/

[Created4]

Here is an update:
Back in 2011 we reported the story of how one small Maine town passed a “Food Sovereignty” ordinance to allow the sale of locally produced food without interference of state or federal regulators. The town was Sedgwick, Maine, and you can read the story here: “Food Sovereignty” law passed in small Maine town to allow sale of locally produced food without interference of regulators.

Soon other towns followed, and this month (March 2013), Brooksville, Maine, became the ninth town to pass a similar law. The residents of Brooksville voted 112-64 to approve the “Local Food and Community Self-Governance Ordinance,” which states that producers or processors of local foods are “exempt from licensure and inspection,” so long as the food is sold directly by the producer to a consumer. The ordinance also makes it “unlawful for any law or regulation adopted by the state or federal government to interfere with the rights organized by this ordinance.”

The State of Maine does not think very highly of these local ordinances, and believes that state regulations for licensing and oversight trump any local ordinances.

The first test case to all of these “Food Sovereignty” laws came when the State of Maine sued farmer Dan Brown of Blue Hill, Maine. The charges stemmed from his selling food without licenses, in his case milk, assorted dairy products, like ice cream and cheese, and processed items like pickles and jams. He was also charged with failure to label his alleged illegal milk “Not Pasteurized.” Oh, and Dan Brown has exactly ONE cow. Yes, he was sued for the sale of milk from a single cow to a handful of people. You can read the story here: Local Food Sovereignty Laws in Maine Come to a Test with Farmer Brown

This case is still pending at the beginning of 2013, and there are rumors both sides are seeking a settlement.

The citizens of Maine are not backing down, however, as the residents of Brooksville have demonstrated. More farmers are destined to collide with State officials over what many see as over-burdensome regulations, denying people their basic freedoms to choose foods from local producers, as opposed to cheap grocery store food (being mostly processed junk food) often imported from hundreds or thousands of miles away. It would seem that other cases like the one of farmer Dan Brown are inevitable.

There could be a solution to years of litigation, however, if the state legislature steps in to pass state-wide laws that agree with local food sovereignty ordinances. According to Bangor Daily, State Rep. Ralph Chapman, D-Brooksville, has said there are several bills being crafted in Augusta that would seek to implement the local food sovereignty rules for direct-to-consumer sales at the state level. If that happened, there would no longer be a conflict between state and local rules.

Until then, everyone around the country concerned about food freedom, and the government attempt to control the nation’s food, will keep a sharp eye on what happens in Maine. So will we here at Health Impact News.

Full article here: http://healthimpactnews.com/2013/brooksville-becomes-ninth-maine-town-to-pass-food-sovereignty-law/

[Keith and stuff]

This is old news. It happened over 2 years ago. There is a current test case going through the courts now with a farmer with a single cow providing raw milk to just a few families. Here is an update, but even this is almost 1 year ago now:

http://healthimpactnews.com/2012/local-food-sovereignty-laws-in-maine-come-to-a-test-with-farmer-brown/

That's pretty insane. There is no reason that you shouldn't be able to buy it at grocery stores if there is the demand. If not lots of demand, it should be at health food stores, co-ops, farmers markets and so on. It's at all 4 places where I live. Heck, you can sell it out of homes and farm stands and farmer's markets without any license or anything in NH. It does need to say not licensed if it isn't licensed, though.

[XNavyNuke]

UPDATE:

Maine high court rejects unlicensed sale of raw milk (http://www.pressherald.com/2014/06/17/maine-high-court-rejects-unlicensed-sale-of-raw-milk/)


The Maine Attorney General’s Office argued that state and federal laws trump local ordinances, making them invalid. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court agreed in its 6-0 decision upholding a 2013 ruling by a Hancock County Superior Court judge.

“The (Blue Hill) ordinance would be constitutionally invalid and pre-empted only to the extent that it purports to exempt from state and federal requirements the distribution of milk and operation of food establishments,” the high court said in its 22-page decision, written by Justice Donald Alexander.

XNN

[Keith and stuff]

UPDATE:

Maine high court rejects unlicensed sale of raw milk (http://www.pressherald.com/2014/06/17/maine-high-court-rejects-unlicensed-sale-of-raw-milk/)

XNN

I halfway agree. The states created both the federal government and the local governments. States can remove town charters if they want, ending the town corporation. The states are where the true power rests, IMO. Of course, in the case of Maine, it isn't 1 of the original 13 states and was never an independent nation so maybe the agreement for state power vs. federal power isn't so strong when it comes to Maine.

Anyway, not at all unexpected but thanks for the update anyway. +Rep

[presence]

I have something snarky to say and just haven't come up with it yet. *lip bitten*