I first met Mark and Jill Baker at the Speakers’ Dinner at the 2012 Wise Traditions Conference in Santa Clara, California. Mark, Jill and I sat at the same table that evening and the three of us along with several other folks stayed up long after dinner had finished talking about a wide range of topics related to the growing local food movement in America.
Mark and Jill are the kind of family you would want living next door. Honest and hardworking with 8 beautiful children, the family works together to run Baker’s Green Acres, a small, peaceful, local farm in Marion, Michigan – a jewel of their community.
Baker’s Green Acres is a sustainable farm where, among other bio-diverse activities, the family raises a heritage breed of hogs called Mangalitsa, a special breed that produces a gourmet quality meat prized by high-end restaurants as well as health conscious consumers seeking nutrient dense, locally produced meat.
Mark and Jill started Baker’s Green Acres 10 years ago after Mark retired after 20 years serving his country in the US Air Force. Unfortunately, the country he put his life on the line to protect has not afforded him the freedom of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness he thought he was defending.
Any Pig Living in the Open Air Deemed “Feral” and “Illegal”
The problems all started back in 2010 when the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued the Invasive Species Order, approved by the governor, which banned all heritage pigs.
The DNR order is intentionally ambiguous in its description of what it calls “feral” pigs.
Ambiguity renders power, essentially allowing the DNR to shut down any hog farmer it chooses.
According to Mark, “They’re saying any pig with a curly tail or a straight tail is an illegal pig … any pig with floppy ears or erect ears is an illegal pig.”
In essence, any pigs were deemed illegal if not living within a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO), those huge, abhorrent industrialized farms run by Big Ag where unspeakable acts of animal cruelty, filth and negligence take place behind closed doors and beyond the prying eyes of the public.
Unbelievably, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources arrogantly labeled any pig living outside in the open air as “feral” and ordered owners of such pigs to destroy them.
Yes, this is what is happening today – right NOW – in the United States of America. Sounds more like the Soviet Russia we learned about in history class where people could be locked up for having a backyard garden!
Baker’s Green Acres Refuses to Comply With Pig Destruction Order
In what no doubt took an incredible amount of courage, Mark and Jill decided to defy the DNR order.
They have sued the state of Michigan seeking to prove in court that the Michigan Pork Producers Association is the initiator of the law classifying all non-CAFO pigs as a “feral” invasive species.
Mark’s belief is that the growing popularity of heritage-breed meat and poultry threatens the factory farming, industrial confinement model. Big Ag will stop at nothing to eliminate the competition while still in its infancy stage but growing rapidly.
According to a recent interview with Food Riot Radio, Mark said:
“If they can issue a declaratory ruling that says anything with a straight tail or curly tail is an illegal pig, and neither the governor, the legislature or the courts say ‘hey wait a minute,’ then what’s to stop them from issuing a declaratory ruling that says any cow that is brown is feral and must be disposed of, or any chicken that is not raised in a hen house is a feral chicken?”
“Industrial agriculture wants all the market share. They want all the small farmers off the land, and they want to own the entire food production model.”
“Our little pig thing is a microcosm of what’s going on nationally. If we let Big Ag win, it will be a grim future for our children and grandchildren. We’re all in this together.”
Through his courageous stand for Food Freedom, it seems that Mark Baker is helping to secure the continued right of Americans to pursue life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as they see fit more as a farmer than he ever did as a soldier.
Mark and Jill Need Our Help Now!
Mark and Jill’s case against the state of Michigan to overturn this order has cost their family dearly.
This family is at the end of its rope financially – the state is seeking fines of $700,000 and has impaired their ability to sell food from the farm – literally trying to starve them out and put them on the street with continued delay tactics. The last I heard, even their power had been cut off.
Mark’s plea:
“There are plenty of us [farmers] that are fighters, perpetual warriors, but we don’t have ammunition to put this fight on. So we’re looking to other Americans and saying please give us some ammunition, and that’s money, U.S. dollars. You can pray for me and pat me on the back and that’s great, but if I can’t pay lawyers to do their job, it doesn’t happen. And I’m at the end of my rope right now, and I need help. There it is — I need help.”
Can you please help them? Donations of any size would be a blessing. It is farms like Baker’s Green Acres that must be saved for a future to exist where our children and grandchildren have the right to choose food to nourish themselves from the local farms of their choosing – free from an industrially produced model.
The hopeful news is that a court hearing is finally coming this month with a celebration of the farm to follow. If you live anywhere in Michigan and can support them at the court hearing or farm event, here are the details:
July 12-13, 2013
2:00pm
Missaukee County Courthouse
111 Canal Street Lake City MI
Food Freedom is the civil rights movement of our time. Let’s all stand together as modern day Patriots to support Mark and Jill and help them set an important precedent against the bureaucratic food terror being wreaked against local farms producing the type of food we need and our children deserve to live a long, healthy life.
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Sources:
I grew very close to Marion in Evart.
crazy does not even begin to describe this..
Just another attempt to take over the food supply and prevent you from being able to feed yourself.
Disturbing.
wow- is there a petition that we can sign somewhere??! this is ridiculous!!
I hear your frustration and your desire to help, but I think this farm family needs more than petitions. Money, moral support, expressions of gratitude and solidarity, and money.
I need to know where to donate!
This is insane!
How dare you suggest an animal live outside when you’re not willing to yourself? (This the mentally ill mentality of vegans)
hold on now dont assume its vegans here. its Gov doing this. Im not vegan but close and my dogs NEVER come inside. its their natural habitat to be outside. bet many of you think thats awful. oh yes they each have their own house they rarely use. only in heavy rain do thay want into thier house!
How did you manage to bring vegans into this? Vegans have NOTHING to do with story ! In fact, vegans have done more for bringing to light the atrocities of CAFO farming than any other group. They aren’t the ones trying to shut down small farms or the selling of raw millk.
That was a really ignorant thing to say. Do a little fact checking before you spread your prejudiced .ideology.
I thought that guy’s comment was a joke. Has to be, no? Anyway let’s lighten up and assume so 🙂
Correct me if I’m wrong but – aren’t animals SUPPOSED to live outside? Bunch o’ crazies.
Now Government has just declared wildlife illegal. This is CRAZY. I hope that the courts are not a stupid. Kill all animals that do not live in a pen or cage, JUST NUTS.
“Government has just declared wildlife illegal” Please expound – this is something that we have not yet heard.
No. They are outlawing the possession of an invasive species. It would hve been nice if this post contained some actual research.
Feral pigs are actually a massive ecological and agricultural nightmare. They cause massive destruction to fields, spread diseases to non-feral pigs that could wipe out an entire herd in a week. I am NOT saying this man’s pigs are feral, or the law is written well. Just relaying that real feral pigs are a massive problem for many states, Michigan likely to be affected in the future. What the gov’t and big ag are doing to this family is horrible, but typical tactics for both.
Sarah,
Are they aware of the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund? They might be able to help with the legal fees.
Yes, they have been in close contact with the FTCLDF.
***Also, anyone in Michigan who can, please join us in being at this hearing to show support to the Bakers! We’re all actually meeting at their farm at noon, so if you can join us there, we can look around a bit and then caravan to the hearing.
More details will be at my blog on Tuesday.
Thanks for a great post on this, Sarah!
Glad to hear you’re doing an update in a few days Kel. Will be sure to FB your story and post the link here for folks to stay in the loop on next week’s activities.
I thought people might like the phone numbers to the Attorney Generals offices to give them a call and voice their opinions, the more the merrier.
Lansing # 517-373-1110
Detroit # 313-456-0240
Grand Rapids# wasn’t listed, sorry.
Mark is fighting for ALL of us, lets give him support!
Can I just say that watching this video makes me cry.