Richard Bean and Jean Rinaldi run Double H Farm in Nelson County. They were working on their farm recently when ten Department of Agriculture and Consumer agents, a state trooper, and the Nelson County sheriff swarmed their property, handcuffed them, hauled them away in separate cruisers, confiscated their computers, and doused all of the meat with bleach. The charge, according to the state, was that the pair were using incorrect labels on their products. The meat had not officially been certified as organic, even though Bean and Rinaldi contend it was. Local farmer Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms has had similar run-ins with state officials, and he joins Coy Barefoot on WINA’s “Charlottesville–Right Now!” to talk about the regulatory obstacles local farms face.
Read the discussion at cvillenews.com.