Illegal Arugula

Image: http://weblog.clagettfarm.org/2004/09/basil_and_arugu.html

Have you been to the farmers market recently, only to find they were out of the kale you we're looking for? The reason might be more complex (and more saddening) that you'd expect.

A recent op-ed in The New York Times exposes how the United States Department of Agriculture might prevent successful local fruit and vegetable farmers from gaining a bigger market share.

USDA regulations set aside land specifically for the cultivation of the top-three government subsidized food commodities (corn, wheat and soy) and penalize farmers who grow other produce. In effect, these regulations work to limit the production of local produce, threatening to make locally grown fruits and veggies both illegal and very expensive.

Read full story here.