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re: smallfarm-mg
At 10:31 AM 10/1/97 -0700, Diane Cooner wrote:
>In Rich Molini's post on this thread, he makes the comment that
>entrepreneurs such as certifying agencies, inspector trainers and
>consultants have all jumped on the band wagon to suck money out of small
>organic farmers. I don't see that it is quite that way.
Before all of these people were sucking money out of small organic
farmers but at lest it was voluntary now small organic farmers will be
forced to pay inspector,certifying agencies etc. the key word is small
organic farmers and forced.
>>From my view, this movement of growing organically started out small.
>CCOF originally had farmers inspecting farmers - for free. To check up on
>each other. Because there were some problems with fraud. As the movement
>got bigger, everyone got more busy and you couldn't find people to go out
>and inspect for free. Consumers demanded the verification, so now the
>movement needed to pay people for the inspection work.
It got bigger because the organic growers made it bigger not the USDA and
now a whole set of folks are now making a living and the small organic
farmer is paying for all of them. Their schooling , their gas,their
income,their motel rooms their time reading reports,this computers , their
time driving down and back again and on and on and on. we are paying .all
this money to people to prove what we already know about ourselves that
we are growing organic. If the consumer demanded verification let them
pay for it I know I am organic. and should not be forced to pay for their
perinoia. You want to test my crop test it just don't make me pay for the
test. that is a tax I do not deserve.
>I agree with Rich that patronizing small local farmers is best. But what
>happens in the meantime, while those farmers are building up their local
>markets? We have had lots of small farmers in our area drop out of CCOF
>because they no longer needed "the stinking badges" to prove to their
>customers that they were doing what they said they were doing. So they no
>longer need the service.
Wrong again. it was because they did not want to give up their rights and
their freedom for stinking badges. We had lots of folks drop out of our
chapter but it was not for reasons you state it was because CCOF along with
others were making the word organic a political football. I know why most
of my chapter stop being CCOF it was because the certifiers we have been
supporting for years sold out our word "organic" to the state and now to
the Feds. We trusted them with our life of living and they sold us out.
Most farmers don't want to go through the political BS just to prove we are
doing the right we know and a lot of us can not afford this extra tax that
keeps growing and growing. It was one thing when we volunteer to pay
these folks now they are making it law that we must pay them or we cannot
tell folks we are organic. Diane that whole inspector thing you are into
is built on the backs of the small farmer and it is wrong to lay it all on
us.I can not afford to pay for my own gas let alone pay for yours.And the
fact that you voted for full pay while your driving showes me it is greed
greed greed. And I should not have to pay one extra cent to farm and sell
organic. The inspectors are the biggest drain of all Diane .They suck up
the most. They invented a new occupation that sucks money out of organic
growers by force. . The inspectors suck up the most of our moneys and they
want even more. I have seen inspections rise in cost again and again and
we can do nothing but pay and now they are making it a law that we must pay
if we want to stay in bussiness. So the inspectors vote to raise their pay
and the certifier raises their cost and the local chapter raises their cost
and we the organic grower pay pay pay.You worry every time you go to the
mail box not knowing who else is going to bleed you dry because you grow
and sell organic. Who else is going to want their pound of flesh. They sold
our names to the state now we have to pay them every year and the feds are
in a room right now deciding what to charge the organic grower after all we
are being forced to pay for this whole trip if we can afford it on not.
Do we stop inspecting completely? What about
>Glacial Ridge? Unfortunately, the problem does seem to lie with large -
>large companies have an incentive to commit large fraud for large
>dollars. But like Walmart, just because we want it to go away doesn't
>mean it's going to. To not continue to police corporate (that magic word)
>business, organic or otherwise, has the potential to damage the entire
>movement.
>Obviously, you can tell that I am involved with the organic inspector
>association, and I will put in a plug for them that they are very
>dedicated people who are working hard to train very dedicated inspectors
>that (again from my view) carry with them the passion for organics, a
>love of the planet and sustainability. To pidgeonhole them as
>entrepreneurs that want to suck off the system is simply not accurate
Sure you see it that way but the poor organic farmer does not see it like
that at all. First of all the inspectors just voted their self a raise.
they now get full pay for driving to the farmers place. they get full pay
to read the report they get all their expenses paid by the poor small
farmer. Some organic inspectors are not even organic growers so their
heart is not in organic ness they are just supplementing their income
bleeding the organic growers. Sure there are some really good guys but
Here I am just farming along when the word from the herd come down that now
the inspectors just voted themselves a raise and guess what I get to pay
for it. Sounds like entrepreneurs that want to suck off the system is very
accurat . No fair. Not only are we forced to pay for all this but they can
vote them selfs a raise (this is what I mean by political football) every
one voting on how much to charge me because I am organic.and charge more
any time they like and we eat it. I been doing this for to long to fall
for the BS that they are dedicated yeah they use to be but now they are
only dedicated to taking my money out of my pocket and putting it in
theirs. Just think if an inspector has to drive 400 miles to your small
farm for a inspection that may take 1/2 hr. yet you are forced to pay this
guy maybe $40 an hour for his drive down and another $40 an hour for the 4
or 8 hour drive back . and the poor small farmer has to pay this persons
motel room and the gas and don't for get to pay him for reading that extra
paper work we have to do and then the inspection at $40 or so an hour then
he charges you $40 an hour for writing his report. etc.and don't forget his
meals. yeah sure they are not bleeding the trunips. not much. vote
yourselves another inspectors raise after all it is the small organic that
will have to pay it. All kind of folks are voting to take money from
organic growers it is open season on us after all we farm organic . easy
target.
>>From my experience, these people care much more than the certifiers.
>And, again, I agree, grow, buy, sell local. But don't fault those that
>are watchdogs for the macro.
>Diane Cooner
>
The certifiers need new computers and rent and don't forget the local
chapter they justed voted another 25$ raise and then there is the state.
and soon the feds all paid for by the small organic farmers (forced) .
Don't tell me the inspectors care about the organic grower when you guys
just raised your driving time to full pay out of my hard earned income.
Vote yourself another raise and sending the bill to me.
An organic grower should not have to pay one cent extra to farm and sell
his organic crop as organic.
If I want to volunteer to pay an inspector that is one thing but when the
state and Federal government force me to pay what ever these folks want
that is a tax for growing and selling organic and we don't deserved to be
taxed for doing the right we know.
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