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Take Action - Farm Bill Amendments
Use the FREE online Fax Petition to Send Message to U.S. Senators
We've Got Your Farmer's Back

The U.S. Senate is currently debating the Farm Bill, S.954. Over 200 amendments are on the table, including #978 to repeal the "Monsanto Protection Act"...more  

 

You can help us speak up for both farmers and consumers in this massive legislation. Let your Senators know NOW that these amendments are important to you while there's still time! 

 

 Go to www.farmtoconsumer.org/FarmBill2013 for details.

 

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5-Day Trial ends in Acquittal on 3 of 4 charges then DOJ moves to Jail Vernon     

     
Vernon at 2012 pre-trial 
Farmer Acquitted by Jury Now Threatened with Jail by DOJ


Baraboo, Wisconsin--June 3, 2013--Less than a week after the jury acquitted him of three criminal charges, Eric Defort and Phillip Ferris, attorneys for the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ), move to have the judge revoke the terms of the bond and jail Vernon Hershberger. In January 2012 Vernon Hershberger was arraigned at the Sauk County Courthouse on four criminal misdemeanor charges for violations of the state food and dairy code; after appearing before Judge Guy Reynolds, he was released on a $500 bond with the bond containing conditions he was not to violate
...more 


  

You can help Vernon! 

Email a letter to Judge Guy Reynolds by Tuesday afternoon, June 11th
A sentencing hearing on the fourth charge has been scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Thursday, June 13th at the Sauk County Courthouse in Baraboo...more  
 
Hershberger - Fresh Food Is Not a Crime 
Vernon was represented by Attorneys Glenn Reynolds &  Elizabeth Rich 

by Pete Kennedy, Esq. 

  

In what Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund vice president Elizabeth Rich called a victory for the food rights movement, a Sauk County jury acquitted dairy farmer Vernon Hershberger on three of four criminal charges for violations of the Wisconsin food and dairy code after a contentious five-day trial.

  

Hershberger was acquitted on charges of operating a farm store without a retail food establishment permit, operating a dairy farm without a milk producer license and operating a dairy plant facility without a license. He was convicted of violating a hold order that Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) officials had...more 


Watch Video:  Vernon talks about his farm, Grazin' Acres, in     
"Let Them Eat Grass - The Food Freedom Revolution
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Herdshares Recognized in MI & ND
Raw Milk Nation Map will be changing

Raw Milk Nation Map
MI & ND heading for "light green"
North Dakota -
Herdshare Bill Signed into Law 
by Pete Kennedy, Esq.          
 

On April 29 herdshares become officially legal in North Dakota when Governor Jack Dalrymple signed Senate Bill 2072 into law. SB 2072 provides that "it is not a violation [of law] to transfer or obtain raw milk under a shared animal ownership agreement."

 

Shared animal ownership is defined...more   




Michigan Adopts Policy on Herdshares
by Pete Kennedy, Esq.          
 

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) has adopted a policy officially recognizing herdshares in Michigan and letting them operate unregulated. MDARD issued the document (Policy # 1.40) on March 12, 2013 - a key point in the department's new policy states that MDARD "does not license or inspect the herd share portion of a dairy farm." The policy...more  

 

Order a copy of the Michigan Workgroup's report 

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The Paleo Miracle by Joe Salama
The Paleo Miracle eBook
At Least Half of All Profits Support FTCLDF         

The people featured in The Paleo Miracle: 50 Stories of Health Transformation are but a handful of thousands who have all undergone a miraculous transformation in their health, eliminating all symptoms of diabetes, heart disease, ADHD, Crohn's, Multiple Sclerosis, Hashimoto's, and many other diseases by eating real food. And they have learned that when the body is healthy inside, it will automatically look healthier on the outside, too.

Joe is generously giving FTCLDF 75% of each e-book you purchase using this link: https://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?cl=235614&c=ib&aff=249192  

videoImageVideo interview of Joe Salama about The Paleo Miracle (click here then scroll to end)

Please support FTCLDF, and share this link with friends and family.   
Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, defends the rights and broadens the freedoms of family farms and artisan food producers while protecting consumer access to raw milk and nutrient-dense foods. Learn more About Us or FTCLDF 2012 Summary.

In cases for members like Vernon, the Fund typically pays for all court costs. The Fund is not an insurance company and cannot guarantee representation on all legal matters. Your membership fees and donations help to keep local food sources available and preserve family farms facing unjust enforcement actions.

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Donations to the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund are always appreciated though not tax-deductible. To make a tax-deductible donation, go to www.f2cfnd.org/donate to earmark it for "public interest litigation" (PIL). Or contact us by email at [email protected] or call 703-208-FARM (3276).
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Please forward this digest to others who are concerned about protecting locally-sourced nutrient dense foods and preserving sustainable small family farms as well as defending the rights to sell and to access the foods of one's choice from the source of one's choice.