This came from Heather Passmore, one of our Chilliwack readers, whose raw milk products have been seized. We thought we’d share her letter, as is:
“Dear Editor,
‘The right to buy food direct from a farmer is as old as our country. Yet, today, that right is being taken away from Canadians by a government that insists that only corporate Canada be responsible for feeding our citizens.’ – Michael Schmidt
There is an impending crisis surrounding well-loved Ontario raw dairy farmer Michael Schmidt. This biodynamic dairy farmer is now on the 28 day of a hunger strike for Food Freedom in Canada. He has simply asked that Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty begin some form of dialogue about cow-share programs in Canada. In fact, he has been asking for 17 years. Schmidt is a man of impeccable character and over 4000 thousand Canadians are watching and waiting for politicians to act now. He has said he “is willing to die if it’s necessary”. (She provides a link for the Facebook group to support him, and a bit more about his story.)
“I am deeply disturbed to be losing my natural right to fresh milk. I own cows through a cow-share outside Vancouver in the farmland of Chilliwack, BC. Michael Schmidt is the agister of my cows and he will be facing contempt of court charges in New Westminster in a few days. These cows are my legal property and they produce my milk, yet the Vancouver Coastal Health authority raided my property and threw it away without warning. I was never compensated for my milk or my artisanal butter, camembert, brie or yoghurt. No-one has ever been sickened by our raw dairy foods. The same cannot be said of industrial foods eaten in North America. Even cantaloupes are becoming a problem.
We really need to see raw milk cow-shares regulated and legalized immediately. I grew up drinking raw milk on a family farm and it is a large part of my cultural heritage. It is also legal in every other G8 country. I can hardly believe a basic food such as fresh milk is on the verge of becoming outlawed in this country. Here are some of the pertinent issues:
- Food freedom is an inalienable constitutional right
- Rights to one’s own property is a legally binding principle
- Cowshares are a legal binding contract of property ownership
- Access to foods from small farms is essential to the health and well-being of families who choose these foods
- Small sustainable farms are essential to the health of agriculture world-wide
- Governmental interference of property ownership rights along with violations to basic human rights of food freedom must end
- Government and health authorities must abstain from the infringement of rights and violence against cowshare programs.
Sincerely,
Heather Passmore”
She has also provided a petition site in support of sustainable food.
