The well-being of their animals is a No. 1 priority of farmers, say representatives of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation, and they don’t need lawmakers telling them how to run their business.
The organization is conducting a public relations campaign aimed at countering efforts by animal rights groups to pass animal cruelty laws that could put costly restrictions or mandates on agriculture.
Greg Gibson, member services director and public relations/multimedia coordinator for the Federation, and state Rep. Bill Pigott, a Walthall County farmer, spoke to the McComb Rotary Club on Wednesday.
Animal rights groups are using undercover videos, some of them years old, to undermine American animal agriculture and promote laws that, in the end, would raise food prices and increase reliance on imported food, both Gibson and Pigott said.
They added the videos are of isolated events, and farmers care properly for their animals because the animals are their livelihood.
Americans spend less than 10 percent of disposable income on food, less than any other country in the world, Gibson said.
Yet only 2 percent of its citizens are in agriculture. That’s both good and bad, he added; good because agriculture is so efficient and bad because so few Americans have an appreciation for what it takes to grow food.
Farmers rely on best management practices, using veterinarians, good nutrition and Extension Service research and education to care for animals, he said, adding it’s better to rely on those practices than laws fashioned by people who know nothing about farming.
Moreover, Pigott said, regulations are already in place on how animal products are handled, and they are monitored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Gibson also promoted a petition the Farm Bureau is circulating seeking a ballot initiative on eminent domain.
The petition advocates writing into the state constitution a prohibition on taking property by eminent doman for private use.
Gov. Haley Barbour vetoed similar legislation on the grounds it could impede economic development, such as the Nissan plant near Canton. The petition, if successful, would put the question to the people in an election.
