Support the PRIME Act!

A bill being considered by Congress will expand access to safer, locally raised meat by loosening federal restrictions on how local meat gets processed. If we want safer alternatives to meat raised in CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations), we must support this bill.

Write to Congress and urge them to support the PRIME Act.

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Please support the PRIME Act

Dear [Decision Maker],

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A bill being considered by Congress (H.R.2859/S.1620) will expand access to safer, locally raised meat by loosening federal restrictions on how local meat gets processed. I urge you to support this bill to promote safer alternatives to meat raised in CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations).

Current federal law requires slaughterhouses producing meat for sale to have USDA inspectors on site during slaughter. The law was passed in 1967, when there were 10,000 slaughterhouses nationwide; today, there are less than 3,000 slaughterhouses operating due to the concentration of the meat industry. Because there are fewer slaughterhouses, small producers must travel incredibly long distances to and from federally inspected slaughterhouses. This means lots of time away from the farm and expensive transportation costs, making it difficult for small businesses to compete with CAFOs.

COVID-19 has made the situation for small farmers even more difficult. There are massive delays at the few slaughterhouses that remain--in some places farmers have been told they have to wait until 2022. Farmers need to care for and feed their animals during that time with no way to make a profit.

There is an alternative: smaller, custom slaughterhouses exist throughout the country. Legally, they can only process meat for the owner of an animal and their family; it cannot be produced for sale. Custom slaughterhouses are exempt from federal requirements to have a federal inspector on the premises when slaughter is taking place, though these facilities do get inspected by the USDA.

The PRIME (Processing Revival of Intrastate Meat Exemption) Act would permit the sale of meat processed at custom slaughterhouses intrastate to households, restaurants, and grocers. This bill will make sustainable, locally-raised meat more affordable and allow small farms to compete with CAFOs on a more even playing field.

Opponents of the bill argue that the PRIME Act would put consumers in danger, since the meat would not be inspected by the USDA. Consider, though, that animals raised in CAFOs are often pumped full of antibiotics. While this helps prevent rampant illness in the filthy conditions of a CAFO, it also turns the animals into "disease factories" where resistant bacteria can flourish. Humans can then be exposed to these superbugs by eating contaminated meat. Because local producers do not typically give their animals antibiotics, locally-raised meat is a much safer bet from a health standpoint. Animals in CAFOs are also fed diets consisting of GMO corn and soybeans, rather than grass and forage. This difference in diet changes the nutritional composition of the meat from the animal--grass-fed meat contains up to five times as much omega-3 fatty acids, which is associated with a number of health benefits.

USDA inspection also does not guarantee safety; there have been plenty of recalls on meat products tainted with dangerous pathogens. In 2016, more than 47 million pounds of meat were recalled because of listeria contamination.
Custom slaughterhouses would process far fewer animals a week than the industrial operations employed by CAFOs--another reason that safety would not be sacrificed under the PRIME Act. Custom slaughterhouses must comply with the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, which stipulates that animals must be rendered insensible to pain before being slaughtered. While there aren't USDA inspectors at every custom facility to ensure compliance, the agency can and has found and punished those who violate the law. Finally, the USDA does periodically inspect custom slaughterhouses to ensure compliance with federal hygiene requirements (having washable walls and floors, proper drainage, etc.).

This is just one example of federal rules that undermine Americans' ability to stay healthy. The FDA and FTC and some state's attorneys general have recently told doctors they can't advise both their patients and the public about natural prevention and treatment for COVID-19. If they continue to do so, they will face fines or even jail. Why? These treatments have solid research behind them. FDA drugs cannot cure COVID-19. But the FDA only seems concerned with protecting drug company monopolies.  All of this is an egregious violation of the patient/doctor relationship that will cost many lives.

Please support the PRIME Act (H.R.2859 and S.1620), but also help to reform a healthcare system that not only bars the use, but even the mention, of natural remedies that have not been, and never can be, put through the multi-billion dollar FDA approval process.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[City, State ZIP]
[Your Email]