Colorado representatives Mike Coffman and Jared Polis co-sponsored the Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. If passed, the act would allow states to permit custom slaughter facilities that are not federally inspected to process small farm and ranch meat animals for sale.Similar federal exemptions are already in place for chicken, but Colorado does not allow those poultry products to be sold to others. National activists such as the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund hope the federal changes will pressure states like Colorado to decriminalize the local food movement.ìOne of the biggest obstacles for prosperity for local small farms is the lack of slaughterhouse infrastructure in many states throughout the country,î said Pete Kennedy, FCLDF president. ìThere’s a number of farmers who have to drive hours to get to the nearest USDA facility. With the passage of the PRIME act, they would have the option to sell that at the custom houses.îThe PRIME Act would allow those farmers to sell their processed meat direct to consumers, as well as directly to venues like restaurants and individual grocery stores. Under current federal and state law, a farm or ranch producer must have their cows, pigs, goats and other meat animals processed at one of just a few USDA inspected processing facilities open to small producers, so they can legally sell the cuts of meat to others. Custom Processing Facilities, which are not federally inspected, can process animals, including game animals, but the meat must be entirely consumed by the producer’s own family and non-paying guests.ìWhy is it safe to buy hundreds of pounds of meat from a custom house, but it’s not safe to buy a steak from that same animal?î Kennedy asked. ìI think overall the custom houses have a good track record for safety. It’s a way to increase markets for farmers while cutting costs for the consumers.îJoel Salatin, owner of Polyface Farms in Virginia and also a popular local food activist, wrote the preamble for the PRIME Act white paper that FCLDF provided its members. ìIt reduces the cost of local food, which is perceived as elitist,î Salatin wrote. ìIf people actually realized how much of this local food price problem is only a result of prejudicial federal government policy, they would at least get as excited as they are about the upcoming presidential election.îIn the article, ìWhy did the chicken cross the road,î in the July issue of The New Falcon Herald, Colorado health and agriculture officials said the state chose not to follow the more lenient federal guidelines for chicken processing because of concerns about salmonella and campylobacter. ìIf the person processes the chicken and eats it themselves, then they are exempt,î said Christi Lightcap, communications director at the Colorado Department of Agriculture. ìIf they are selling it, the USDA still exempts them, but the CDA still requires them to get a USDA inspection.îThe state can choose to use the same reasoning to continue prohibiting meat sales, even if the PRIME Act passes at the federal level. ìThey’d have the option,î Kennedy said. ìThey could keep the USDA rules, that would be up to them. The states would have the freedom to allow ñ- or not allow ñ- intrastate commerce.îAdditional public attention on the issue because of the PRIME Act could encourage states like Colorado to consider legalizing small farm meat, as well as chicken. ìI really hope the Colorado Legislature reevaluates that,î Kennedy said. ìWe have never heard of even an allegation of someone under that exemption making people sick. The number of illnesses since that exemption has been on the books has been zero. It’s not a food safety measure, it’s an industry protection measure.îThe PRIME Act, or H.R. 3187, currently has 16 co-sponsors and has been referred to the House Agriculture subcommittee on livestock. ìRight now, we’re working on getting more co-sponsors,î Kennedy said. ìOn the good side, we haven’t seen a lot of opposition but it needs more support.î
