Government Raid of Amish Farm ‘Shameful,’ ‘Deck Stacked’ Against Small Farmers: Rep. Thomas Massie

Jugs of raw milk. Courtesy of Peter Bartlett

The armed raid and subsequent lawsuit against an Amish farm by government officials on suspicion of selling “illegal milk” is only the latest example of how the government has weaponized its regulatory agencies on behalf of large agriculture interests, according to a lawmaker.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) told The Epoch Times that a corrupted alliance between “Big Ag” and rule makers at the Department of Agriculture has created a monopoly that has led small, independent farmers to the brink of extinction.

“The deck is definitely stacked,” Mr. Massie told the Epoch Times. “85 percent of meat comes from four companies, and this monopoly exists as a result of government regulatory policy. There is an incestuous relationship between these large companies and the Department of Agriculture.

“The small dairy farmer is almost extinct,” he added.

Earlier this month, the alleged failures to adhere to the government’s regulatory policy led to Miller’s Organic Farm, a popular Amish farm in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, being the subject of an armed raid by officials on suspicion of selling “illegal milk,” among other products. The Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture filed the lawsuit on Tuesday against the farm’s owner, Amos Miller, alleging that he has violated Pennsylvania’s Milk Sanitation Law by operating without government-mandated permits.

The farm has been ordered to halt all sales of its dairy products, inspiring widespread anger over what critics have called a blatant example of government overreach.

Attorney Robert Barnes, who represents Mr. Miller, issued a statement following the initial raid, claiming it violated his client’s constitutional rights.

“The Department of Agriculture of the State of Pennsylvania suddenly came, without notice, raided Amos’ farm, and detained everything Amos had in the farm’s freezer. They did so in a lawless manner, without appropriate authority, in violation of their own rules and regulations,” Mr. Barnes said.

‘Shameful’

Mr. Massie called the armed raid on the Amish farmer “shameful.”

“People are going to break laws when the laws are ridiculous,” said Mr. Massie, referring to the complex regulatory framework. “A small farmer can’t get to market without paying costly fees or jumping through hoops that often make little or no sense.”

Mr. Massie hopes that the new legislation he has authored will make it easier for small farmers and ranchers to serve their customers and remain a sustained part of the American food landscape. The Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption (PRIME) Act would give individual states the freedom to permit “intrastate distribution of custom-slaughtered meat such as beef, pork, or lamb to consumers, restaurants, hotels, boarding houses, and grocery stores.”

The bipartisan bill, co-authored by Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), already has 50 co-sponsors and is set to be attached to the upcoming farm bill, according to Mr. Massie.

“Consumers want to know where their food comes from, what it contains, and how it’s processed. Yet federal inspection requirements make it difficult to purchase food from trusted, local farmers,” Mr. Massie said upon release of the bill.

“It is time to open our markets to give producers the freedom to succeed and consumers the freedom to choose.

“Every single outbreak in the meat industry has come from big processors,” he added.

The money flowing from industry to government agencies has created conflicts of interest in how the safety rules are implemented. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), who are charged with setting regulatory policy, have received funding from corporate sponsors in the form of “partnerships,” including from several large agro-industrial farming interests.

‘Criminalize Independence’

North Dakotan farmer Peter Bartlett, whose family owns Bartlett Farms, which sells raw dairy products, previously told The Epoch Times that it seems the government’s actions aren’t driven by health concerns but control over the nation’s food supply.

“The USDA and FDA have been lobbied over the years by the industrial food system while small and independent farmers are not well represented,” Mr. Bartlett said. “What we are now seeing come to fruition through a regulatory process that tilts the scales to criminalize independence.

“The truth is they feel threatened by anyone acting independently from the system, and that is why the government has decided to target this particular farm—to make an example of him, to scare people.”

The Amish farm is the epitome of independence from a system that has been corrupted by the financial influence of big business, according to Mr. Bartlett. He added that a solution will be found only after consumers shift their support from the mass-produced industrial foods sold at most supermarkets to smaller, local farms.

While Mr. Massie said he believes the PRIME bill will become law with the passage of the next farm bill, making it easier for independent farmers to make a living and meet the needs of their customers, he anticipates opposition from large agriculture businesses that currently profit from the status quo.

“It is a constant resistance,” said Mr. Massie.