Small-scale
farmers could be forced to shut down their operations if they’re
producing goods in an area zoned as non-agricultural. Smartly written
Right to Farm laws could help these producers stay in business.
Shady
Grove Farm in Gwinn, Mich., is owned by Randy and Libby Buchler. These
small-scale farmers are protected by the state’s Right to Farm act.
Photo By Randy Buchler
If
we want true food security — defined as the ability of a country,
region, state or community to be as self-sufficient in food production
as possible — then we need a legal system that supports local,
small-scale food production.
Farms that fit this bill turn out
healthful food, guard against shortages, stabilize local economies and
instill community camaraderie.
As suburbs spread steadily across
our continent, however, small farmers are continually facing problems
with local zoning codes and nuisance complaints, even when their
operations have not caused any injury to their neighbors. Although state
Right to Farm laws are sometimes written to protect Big Ag, Right to
Farm laws that support small-scale farmers can be a key aspect of
creating sustainable, local food systems.
Michigan is ahead of the
curve when it comes to setting up legal protections for small-scale
farmers, and the state’s Right to Farm laws are making a real
difference.
Case in point: Randy and Libby Buchler of Shady Grove
Farm, who raise chickens and sheep, and sell eggs and wool locally.
Their 6.5-acre property is zoned as “Lake Residential.” In 2009, Forsyth
Township in Michigan filed a lawsuit to shut down Shady Grove Farm,
citing it as a nuisance because its existence violated the local zoning
ordinance that prohibited any type of agricultural activity. In December
2012, however, a Michigan judge ruled that the Buchlers’ farming
operations were protected by the Michigan Right to Farm Act (RTFA), and
denied the township’s lawsuit.
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