Kristin Canty's new documentary Farmageddon — about organic farmers hounded out of business by absurd regulations and government agents presumably working for big agribusiness — delves deep into several cases of alleged government abuse. What's worse, the families profiled are confronted by a system that appears to have been rigged at every level, from cops to inspectors to the bought-off judges and political fat cats at the top of the government food chain.
The stories — of SWAT teams and slaughtered animals and confiscated property, all in the name of agricultural regulation — are harrowing, and utterly believable. But when one of the interviewees muses, "You have to wonder why," audience members may nod in agreement — because, while Canty convinces us that the abuses are real, she doesn't do a clear job of either explaining the causes or identifying the culprits, except in the most general terms.
Much of Farmageddon concerns the production of raw milk, which many producers and consumers find preferable to the pasteurized version you find at the grocery store. Raw milk holds onto its nutrients far better than the processed kind, and has been linked to a host of health benefits, including a reduction in asthma symptoms and digestion problems. The only hang-up is that by its very nature raw milk is loaded with bacteria. Yes, most of the bacteria is harmless (or even beneficial), but there's also a chance that potentially deadly e-coli is swimming around in there, too. As such, raw milk production is heavily regulated. So regulated that it's becoming almost impossible to sell it.
Farmageddon begins with the story of Linda and Larry Faillace, Vermont dairy farmers who imported European sheep for milking. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, fearful of an outbreak of Mad Cow disease, at first quarantined the animals and silenced the Faillaces with threats. After more than a year of red tape, the USDA finally confiscated and killed all of the Faillace's livestock — arriving at the farm just days before an appeal hearing and during a blizzard, no less.
You may be wondering how often sheep get Mad Cow disease? The answer is, they don't. European officials brought in by the Faillaces testified that they had never seen the disease jump species. No matter; the USDA had their marching orders and stuck to them.
Next up are Steve and Barbara Smith. Steve's an ex-NASA scientist, Barb's a Brown grad. They live in upstate New York raising "30 cows, 10 chickens, two pigs and nine kids." Like the Faillaces, the Smiths ran afoul of the USDA due to raw milk production and had to deal with SWAT teams, search warrants, and the confiscation and destruction of valuable animals and farm equipment. As Steve puts it, "The only farm crop that's regulated more than raw milk is marijuana. It seems ridiculous." Farmageddon also chronicles the travails of raw milk producers in California and private co-ops on both coasts that try to skirt the law by selling only to members and not the general public. (Not surprisingly, the Feds keep raiding these folks, too.) You will be outraged, and if you're like me, you'll start looking around for someone to blame.
And this is where Farmageddon falters. Despite laying out a convincing case that one-size-fits-all food production laws are bogus and government agencies are abusing their power, first-time director Kristin Canty provides no evidence of official malfeasance besides the farmers' testimony. Canty seems content to blame the government without trying to reach a real understanding of what the government is or why it does what it does.
I expected the second half of Farmageddon to be consumed with talking heads from Monsanto and Archer Daniels Midlands on the hot seat and USDA officials denying that they are bought and paid for by big business. I also figured there would be embarrassing government documents and at least one bureaucrat fleeing from the camera. None of this happens. Instead, we get story after story of good people ground down by government, and Rep. Ron Paul spewing idiocy about how the people aren't yelling loud enough to get the attention of their members of Congress. By the end of Farmageddon, I was convinced we'll all soon be dead from food poisoning and there is nothing anyone can do to stop it.
Not that I think that's the point Canty is trying to make. Farmageddon is less than successful because Canty's strength as an interviewer is overwhelmed by her greenness as a filmmaker. There is nothing visually interesting about the film (it basically jumps from one medium shot of a talking head to the next), Canty's childlike narration is a distraction, and the lack of any specific villains (aside from the evil, faceless "government") sucks the drama from the proceedings.
But Farmageddon does provide plenty of grass-fed red meat for the activists, and is bound to find a receptive audience among those deeply interested in the raw food movement.
This article appears in Aug 4-10, 2011.