As a small agricultural producer of food for human consumption, I am intimately involved in growing and marketing my vegetables, meats, eggs and milk directly to the consumers and my customers. We know each other. There is ample opportunity to discuss the materials and methods we use on our farm to produce the food they will consume from us. Anyone and everyone is welcome to visit our farm anytime to learn about agriculture in general or our specific practices. Does it seem obvious that this transparency reduces the risks to the consumer? Is it clear that we cannot afford to offer contaminated or unsafe food to our customers? How many customers would we retain if word got out that we produced unhealthful food? My point is that small scale agriculture is very safe because it is inherently self regulated. It is impractical and absurd to require small scale farmers to comply with the same onerous regulations that industrial scale producers do.

In a county where the government colludes with large scale pharmaceutical and commodity companies that do untold harm through the manufacture and sale of drugs with deadly side effects and processed foods devoid of nutrition and now a blind eye turned to GMOs and their myriad risks and unknowns, it is ironic that it is proposed that we further burden and alienate the farmers that have the track record for producing the safest and most nutritious food! Believe it or not the American public is intelligent enough to determine for themselves what kind of food they want to put into their bodies, and even if we choose to put unhealthy or harmful substances in our bodies, that is our right. We do not need the government forcing themselves into our personal lives in this or any other fashion. It will not make food more safe just as all of the FDA’s recommendations over the years have not made Americans more healthy. We now have the highest incidence of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, obesity and many other debilitating and life threatening diseases that we have ever had. And now we should entrust this government agency with the power to regulate the producers of real food out of business?

For any that still believe in God and the unalienable rights that He has given us, it will be a forgone conclusion that food rights and food freedom would be inherent in a government of the people, by the people and for the people. And for any that believe in the prophecies of the Holy Bible, which by the way, comes from a source more intelligent and loving that any man, we should consider what is happening in Washington in light of the following scripture:

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

For any in government that have run out of good things to do and are looking for ways to secure the life, liberty and happiness of all Americans, I would refer you to the Constitution of the United States. It has the rules for mostly self governance by the people with a handful of duties for the national government and the rest for the states and local governments to determine. You will not find in that document any duties the government has or can assume to determine what people can or cannot eat.

Please pass the fresh lettuce I harvested today and the raw milk from the cow; and may I be blessed to live another day despite my foolish behavior in consuming such dangerous products…

Curtis Haderlie

To submit your own comments go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FDA-2011-N-0921