Small livestock farmers and custom meat processors would love to sell more meat locally. And consumers want to buy meat from local farms. The problem is federal policy makes this exchange extremely difficult. There are two bills on the table that will support the supply of farm-raised meats by improving access to local meat processing […]
PRIME Act
Remedy for Slaughterhouse Logjam?
Access to slaughterhouses has been poor for small livestock producers in most of the country for many years now but has become considerably worse since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis. USDA-inspected slaughterhouses have since last spring been booking customers as far out as 2022. Many custom slaughterhouses are now booking well into 2021. One possible answer for the slaughterhouse…
Working to Better Serve FTCLDF Members
Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund (FTCLDF) recently conducted a survey of its members to learn how COVID-19 has affected their farm businesses and to learn what more the organization can do to serve its members. Here is what we learned and what we are planning at the FTCLDF…
PRIME Act Would Address Meat Access Woes
A recent survey among Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund (FTCLDF) members indicates that members’ top concerns include the unavailability of meat processors and regulations that interfere with the ability of farmers and ranchers to deliver farm products directly to the consumer. The Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption (PRIME) Act would repeal the ban on the intrastate sale of…
Small Farms Can Help Address Food Waste
The stunning food waste that is one of many unexpected consequences of COVID-19 has made us all painfully aware of how highly vulnerable industrial farms are to sudden fluctuations in demand and pullbacks on the regular flow of commerce…