THE GOVERNMENT WANTS TO OUTLAW YOUR GARDENS!

[Bexhet]

It's called HR 875: Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009, and the supposed justification for such a law is food safety. It is being sponsored by Rosa DeLauro [D-CT] and co-sponsored by 39 other representatives from various states.

Here are some preliminary observations of the bill:
Legally binds state agriculture depts to enforcing federal guidelines effectively taking away the states power to do anything other than being food police for the federal dept.
Effectively criminalizes organic farming but doesn't actually use the word organic.
Affects anyone growing food even if they are not selling it but consuming it.
Legislation is so broad based that every aspect of growing or producing food can be made illegal. There are no specifics which is bizarre considering how long the legislation is.
Section 206 defines what will be considered a food production facility and what will be enforced up all food production facilities. The wording is so broad based that a backyard gardener could be fined and more.
Section 207 requires that the state's agriculture dept act as the food police and enforce the federal requirements. This takes away the states power and is in violation of the 10th amendment.
Here's the link to the bill text:

http://www.congress.org/congressorg/webreturn/?url=http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.R.875:

[Artinous]

your link is broken, also for starters the bill is still being refines. It will most definitely see several forms of review before it is even considered being put on the books. There aren't even enough members supporting it to make a majority in either house, so it will be a while before we see this bill passed

[Captain Verd]

No it isn't.

It's being made so they can check imported food, and the food of farmers selling their stuff to other people.

With all the EEEE COLIIIIII scares we've been having, they're trying to look like they're doing something. If you use cat poop for fertilizer, they will now be able to tell you to stop. They will not come to your house and burn down your window box filled with basil.

[Bexhet]

Read the language in the bill before you pop off with decisions. Yes it is in refining process but if you don't tell your congresspeople what is and isn't okay with this bill it may very well end up that you have some rather barren farmers markets or that your organic farmers must use methods they don't agree with.

[Captain Verd]

Bexhet

Read the language in the bill before you pop off with decisions. Yes it is in refining process but if you don't tell your congresspeople what is and isn't okay with this bill it may very well end up that you have some rather barren farmers markets or that your organic farmers must use methods they don't agree with.

The bill doesn't use the term "organic", so organic farmers got nothing to fear, yo.

[Bexhet]

oh open your frigging eyes

"On February 4th, 2009 Ms. DeLauro introduced H.R. 875 entitled "Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009." This bill is allegedly to protect the US' food supply, however, it leaves small farmers, especially organic, at a great disadvantage to the corporate ones. Congresswoman DeLauro has several ties to corporate agriculture. For instance, her husband Stanley Greenberg has Monsanto as a client. Ms. DeLauro also receives massive donations from agribusiness political action committees."

[Captain Verd]

Bexhet

oh open your frigging eyes

"On February 4th, 2009 Ms. DeLauro introduced H.R. 875 entitled "Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009." This bill is allegedly to protect the US' food supply, however, it leaves small farmers, especially organic, at a great disadvantage to the corporate ones. Congresswoman DeLauro has several ties to corporate agriculture. For instance, her husband Stanley Greenberg has Monsanto as a client. Ms. DeLauro also receives massive donations from agribusiness political action committees."

Go into detail. Why does this put organic farmers at more of a disadvantage?

Organic being a shifty term anyway, since organic food is popular atm, so many corporations are marketing their food that way to make money.

[aquarius_horse]

and i could care less right now. hate to sound harsh but i have more important things to at this point in my life than be all paranoid as to what move the government will be making next.

[Mauserati]

Outlawing organic farming? Oh noes! They're going to make a farming process that takes twice as much land and resources as typical farming illegal! What are we going to do!? D:

What are they going to do next, outlaw destruction of forests for use as soy bean farms? Heaven forbid!

[GunsmithKitten]

Although I wouldn't put it past my government to kick down my kitchen doors ("N'yah! You'll never take me alive, coppers! I've got home grown garlic to cook with! Enough cloves for a month! N'yah!" wink
the bill is pretty shoddily written and won't pass in this form.

[GunsmithKitten]

Gin Rin

Outlawing organic farming? Oh noes! They're going to make a farming process that takes twice as much land and resources as typical farming illegal! What are we going to do!? D:

Well, it's just that by the wording of the law, I'm going to be a criminal because I grow my own garlic and tomatoes in small window boxes for cooking.

[devilbuddha]

that silly fascist government! what shenanigans it will come up with next!

[rweghrheh]

Bexhet

oh open your frigging eyes

"On February 4th, 2009 Ms. DeLauro introduced H.R. 875 entitled "Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009." This bill is allegedly to protect the US' food supply, however, it leaves small farmers, especially organic, at a great disadvantage to the corporate ones. Congresswoman DeLauro has several ties to corporate agriculture. For instance, her husband Stanley Greenberg has Monsanto as a client. Ms. DeLauro also receives massive donations from agribusiness political action committees."

Farmers usually sell what they grow to make a living. It's sad they they would have to suffer and have the government try to take control but there is nothing about personal gardens though (I highly doubt they would do anything if you just grow it for yourself or your family if you don't sell it).

As what others said, they are doing to try and "protect" our food supplies and to try to make more money (they don't want them to take away what they think is their money). Small farmers been having problems for years.

Crap I misread part of the first post. Well too many people grow their own food, it would be impossible to stop them all IF that is true. I'm pretty sure they are more after people that sell it.

[black_wing_angel]

Captain Verd

No it isn't.

It's being made so they can check imported food, and the food of farmers selling their stuff to other people.

With all the EEEE COLIIIIII scares we've been having, they're trying to look like they're doing something. If you use cat poop for fertilizer, they will now be able to tell you to stop. They will not come to your house and burn down your window box filled with basil.

I was going to say...It sounded like the OP was off her rocker. Why the ******** would the government care if I grew my own tomatoes? If I were going to SELL them, sure, I can see them wanting to step in and say "FUR DA SAFTEE OV DA KUSTUMIRZ WEE WUNT 2 MAEK SHUR YER FUUD IZ SAEF!!"

But if I'm the only one going to eat it, and am not making profit off of it, then what the ******** does the government care?

[OfficerLawl]

I think you're missing the point here. The government has nothing to gain from persuing this. And by this I only refer to outlawing personal gardens at home bit. It would be difficult as hell to regulate, what are they gonna do go around peaking over fences into millions of back yards to check for illegal gardens? And the amount of food a personal garden of the average American family produces is negligible at best. It wouldn't be worth the time or money for them to enforce it. What would they gain?

It may be vague enough to include home gardens (I don't know I haven't read it), but whether this is so or not they have nothing to gain at all by doing so.