Legislature looking to pass farm bill
Courtesy Photo
Raw milk is back on the legislative menu this session, with a majority of the House signing onto a farm bill that Westport Rep. Paul Schmid said would benefit legislative districts from the urban cores to the rolling pastures and forests far from Boston.
The Senate passed a similar bill 36-1 last year, and with more than 60 percent of the House already endorsing Schmid's bill, the horizon appears bright for an omnibus agriculture bill this session.
The bill (HD 3144) would open up state parkland for use by farmer's markets and community gardens, help veterans deploy to the state's farm fields, and make it easier for dairy farmers to sell their milks sans pasteurization.
"Everybody's district has a farmer's market these days, and everybody's concerned about locally raised food. They know it's healthier and it's probably raised with less of a cost on the environment," Schmid told the News Service. He said, "It's been, I'm told, more than 20 years since we did anything on a large basis for agriculture."
In the bill approved by the Senate last May, senators attached a measure banning single-use plastic bags from farmer's markets. The bill never surfaced for a vote in the House, ending its journey in the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Schmid's bill has the backing of 96 members of the House - a majority of the 160-seat body - and 10 senators. Spencer Democrat Sen. Anne Gobi filed similar legislation in the Senate, and co-sponsored Schmid's bill.
Considered a delicacy in some quarters, raw milk has been viewed unfavorably by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which warned it might contain microorganisms causing vomiting, diarrhea, or flulike symptoms, which can be life-threatening for some.
Farms currently have a limited ability to sell unpasteurized milk. Schmid's bill would allow a farmer with 12 or fewer lactating cows or goats to enter a farm-share agreement to distribute raw milk, and it would allow for the sale of raw milk at farm stands unconnected to the farm.
"We know that that was somewhat controversial. Some of the dairy people are concerned that reducing the supervision of raw milk might lead to problems that would reflect badly on the industry on the whole," Schmid told the News Service. Asked why the raw milk provision was included, he said, "We think it's a good idea, and it helps some folks out in western Massachusetts, so we're going to try it again."
The bill would establish a Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Program, providing training and employment for veterans seeking to work in the agricultural field, which Schmid said would be "a natural fit for many."
Schmid is a beef farmer with a 43-head herd and a Marine veteran who enlisted during the Vietnam War era but did not serve in combat.
"I got kicked out of college and they said, 'Schmid, try the Marines and then come back,'" Schmid explained.
Last session Schmid was House chairman of the Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture, and Gobi was Senate chairwoman. Last year's omnibus agricultural legislation that passed the Senate was drafted in committee. Committee assignments have not yet been made for the 2017-2018 session.
Schmid said his bill has something for lawmakers from urban districts hoping to make use of Department of Conservation and Recreation property for farmer's markets and community gardens, and myriad benefits for agricultural operations in more pastoral parts of the state.
"In rural areas we all know that agriculture is an important economic activity. So I think this bill captures both the rural as well as the city people," Schmid said.
The bill would establish a panel to consider adjusting the plumbing code for farm operations. According to a bill summary, it increases the duration of timber harvesters and foresters' licenses, and adds a method for protecting land certified as forest, agricultural or horticultural land in the event of a sale.
The 106 co-sponsors reflect a bipartisan mix of lawmakers from all corners of the state. Those signing onto the bill include House Minority Leader Brad Jones, of North Reading; Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr, of Gloucester; and Democrats who have held leadership positions Sen. Marc Pacheco, of Taunton; Rep. Patricia Haddad, of Somerset; and Rep. Byron Rushing, of Boston.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments