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> At 09:10 AM 9/18/97 -0400, Erorganic@aol.com wrote:
> >eak: Anyone that can not afford $250 per year to create a level playin=
g floor
> >between thousands of farms across the nation selling ag products in =
direct
> >competition with each other at a premimum price needs to reorganize, =
either
> >becoming more efficient or find new markets or recognize that the pric=
e is
> >part of the cost of doing business. If your sales are under $5000, =
the farm
> >must be run according to the USDA/National Organic Program, but the =
farm does
> >not have to be certified. $5000 is sort of the breakeven point of pre=
mium
> >equaling cost of certification. 25% premium over conventional about =
equals
> >$250. If I did not want to pay, I would not use the label "organic".
> >
> > I don't have an extra $250 does that mean I cannot sell organic ? =
> >
> >eak: No, If you don't have $250, you are under the $5000 small farm
> >exemption.
> >
> $5000 in sells does not mean I have any money left to pay this organic =
tax.
> 5000 is not a brake even point it is a bs number. there are costs you
> know. you guys are really heartless I can see that. How is this a lev=
el
> playing floor as chemical farmers don't have to pay to farm and organic
> farmers do have to pay. You are going to level the playing floor alrig=
ht .
> Just another cross a small farmer has to bear thanks to the goverment. =
That
> is one reason they are on the endangered list.
>
> Now organic growers will not only have to support their family but we =
get
> to support the families of the USDA pencil pushers and we get to suppor=
t
> the families of the inspectors and we get to support the certifier and
> etc. I should not say get to as we are forced too if we want to tell
> people the truth. We get to buy them gas ,pay for their hotel rooms =
and
> even buy them new computers. we get to pay for their bookkeepers and
> office workers. Yep thats is a level playing floor for organic growers
> alright. And for paying all this money you know what we organic grower=
s
> get. Lots more paper work to do ,a search of our land at anytime (don=
't
> forget to cheek my trash can and under my bed after all thats were orga=
nic
> farmers hid that herbicide. ) ,an organic Gestapo that we are paying =
to
> harass us and much more bs. Why because we don't use USDA approved Poi=
sons
> and we want to tell people about what we are not doing and that you can
> farm organic and people don't need to be eating USDA approved pesticid=
es
> and drinking USDA approved herbicides and we don't have to harm our ear=
th
> to feed folks. yep I really feel you guys are trying to level the pla=
ying
> floor. LEVEL is the right word. Organic farmers get the shaft and =
get to
> pay for all of it. They have taken the word organic away from us and =
now
> the USDA owns that word organic and natural and ecological and if we
> organic growers use it we have to pay them. yep level playing field
> alright. I knew they could own all the hybrid seed and all the lab mad=
e
> gene DNA changed life forms but that they could own our words. Words =
like
> organic and natural etc . this is a new hight.off wickness. They are
> telling us what we can say and what we can not say. and force us to pay
> them money because of how we live our life. I know you can not call =
fire
> in a crowded room that is unless there is a fire . I would think you =
could
> tell people you are organic if you are. Now it is a crime to tell the
> truth. Now USDA control the words these organic farmers were using. =
The
> ABC you learn in the school to make words is not yours to use as free=
but
> is owned by the USDA and they will tell us what letters we can use and
> which letters are a no no to put together. [ They have taken our words =
away
> and no one cares. ] I would say they leveled the playing field. What=
are
> some of the other words we have to pay the USDA to use. Can we still =
use
> permaculture if we earned that right or do we have to pay the USDA. =
What
> about bio-dynamic do we have to pay the USDA to use that word. Can I =
get a
> list of all the words that I am no longer free to use because I dare =
to
> grow organic. This is new to me not being about to talk freely about =
my
> life of living and having to watch the words I use when I tell the tru=
th.
> Thanks for the level playing field. Now when The MAN says jump I am
> suppose to say how high . Thank you for leveling the playing field. =
They
> are sitting in a room right now thinking about how much to charge us =
for
> using words that have been ours and free to use for 60000 years. A sma=
ll
> farmer does not have a chance . Organic growing is big business and the=
y
> only want the big players and small organic farmers have no business
> farming if they can not pay this extra tax for growing organic. Small
> organic farmers why don't they all just fad away. There is nothing lik=
e a
> level playing field. Thanks
> If they charge the certifier the certifier pass the cost down to the
> farmer if they charge an inspector it is the farmer that pays. the farm=
er
> is paying for all this. It is just another way to bleed the turnips. =
> More government more taxes made up special for those crooked,lying orga=
nic
> growers. I already pay an inspector, I already pay a certifier,I all =
ready
> pay the state of Ca. this is getting nuts. How many pencil pushers do
> organic farmers have to pay off just because they want to sell organic =
food
> as organic.
>
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