By Kevin Miller
11/18/2011
Full Article
BLUE HILL, Maine — Small-scale farmers and Mainers who buy directly from them held a boisterous rally Friday to support a Hancock County man sparring with agriculture officials over his right to sell “raw milk” and other products from his farm without a license.
Farmer Dan Brown admitted to the crowd of 150-plus people gathered outside Blue Hill’s Town Hall Friday that he has become a reluctant spokesman for his side in the potential legal fight emerging over Maine’s vibrant “local foods” movement.
“I would like to be nowhere else than on my farm,” said Brown, clearly uncomfortable in front of a large group and a microphone.
But Brown has, indeed, become the public face in a court case that could test the legality of a “local food” ordinance that seeks to exempt him and other farmers from state or federal inspections and licensing.
“Who is Farmer Brown?” shouted one rally attendee.
“We are all Farmer Brown,” came the response from the crowd.
Brown, who runs Gravelwood Farm in Blue Hill, received notice earlier this month that the Maine Department of Agriculture has filed a lawsuit to stop him from selling raw or unpasteurized milk without a license.
State agriculture officials maintain that licensing of raw milk distributors is necessary to protect the public, given the potential for harmful bacteria in unpasteurized milk. A sample of milk from Brown’s farm tested by the state was found to have bacteria levels well above the legal limit.
To those gathered in Blue Hill on Friday, however, the lawsuit filed against Brown by Whitcomb’s department is an attack on consumers’ rights and on the towns that have adopted “food sovereignty” ordinances.
“We have asserted the right to choose what food we eat and feed our families,” said Heather Retberg, a Penobscot farmer who sells raw milk.
Retberg said she and other farmers are simply serving friends and neighbors who would rather purchase their milk, produce or meat from a farm down the road owned by a person they trust.
Five Maine towns — Blue Hill, Penobscot, Sedgwick, Trenton and Hope — have adopted ordinances declaring that farmers who sell to consumers directly for home consumption are not subject to inspection or licensing by state or federal regulators.
Maine agriculture officials disagree, saying the state and federal health safety laws preempt local ordinances. During an interview on Wednesday, Whitcomb said the lawsuit against Brown was not intended to test those towns’ policies, although he acknowledged the issues are one and the same among some who support the local ordinances.
Blue Hill’s Board of Selectmen met Friday during the rally and voted to send Whitcomb a letter asking the department to drop the charges against Brown and to respect the town’s local food ordinance.
Brown has 20 days from the time he was served with the lawsuit to file a written response. He said this week he was waiting to hear whether organizations involved in local control issues in the agriculture industry would help with his defense.