Government Regulations—What are they costing us? And should they be??

Government Regulations—What are they costing us?   And should they be??

We are paying the price at the pumps.  Driving a vehicle with a diesel engine means that you are paying an even higher price, for a bi-product of the cheaper fuel, too which always seems to rub me the wrong way.  And when you live in a rural area where traveling is a large part of life, doctors appointments, major shopping, family events, etc., are all an 80 mile minimum drive, it is really hard to stay off the road.  So, your budget tightens, you start skimping on spending everywhere you can in order to be able to keep driving.  And the oil companies are still making millions, but they swear up and down there is nothing they can do—it’s all about the government regulations. 

So, a few more government regulations slip in here and there, and we continue paying the price, only now it isn’t just at the pumps, it is at the grocery store.  More regulations on farmers and ranchers are driving the cost of our food, UP! This is why agriculture awareness is so important for everyone, not just those in the industry—you have the ability to help control these regulations, to voice your opinions—and so many are, just not in the way we would hope.  So many think that they are doing what is right for the animals, what is safest, what makes them happiest and healthiest while they are being raised for consumption. 

Unfortunately, most people do not understand the ins and outs of animal production, of why laying hens are in cages, or sows are in crates.  They don’t understand the efforts being put in to keep these facilities clean, disease free and more of a controlled environment where they can use less antibiotics or other treatments that seem so offensive to many consumers.  They don’t understand the care and effort put into these animals by the producers, who want to maintain their livelihood and know that doing so means productive and healthy animals. In 1990, studies and reports (by North and Bell) on battery cages or crates used for laying hens showed these positives:  

1. It is easier to care for the pullets; no birds are underfoot. 2. Floor eggs are eliminated. 3. Eggs are cleaner. 4. Culling is expedited. 5. In most instances, less feed is required to produce a dozen eggs. 6. Broodiness is eliminated. 7. More pullets may be housed in a given house floor space. 8. Internal parasites are eliminated. 9. Labor requirements are generally much reduced. 

It also showed that 75% of the worlds commercial layers and 95% of those in the US used this system.  That's a lot of eggs, you wipe out this system and you put a huge and very heavy burden on these egg producers, production goes down while demand is still going up and the cost will be--well, I never in my life dreamed I would pay over $4 a gallon for fuel and do it often, so I am just grateful at this point we raise our own eggs.   There are ups and downs in all aspects of life, but we do our best, American Farmers and Ranchers are doing there best--the ones I wonder about are the ones creating the legislation--are they doing their best?  Their best to put us out of business, their best to raise the cost of living?   Okay, enough of my orneriness, but take the time to be informed, to know about the things that so strongly impact your day to day living--we Americans take for granted our food supply and we need to stop it and become involved in it before we have no say left. 

When these government regulations come up, the voice fighting against them isn’t strong enough and they pass.  More family farms shut down, generations worth of farming families can no longer produce at the level they were because of the expense added to implement and maintain these regulations—regulations which may not be needed or necessary at all.  Not to mention, we pay the price at the market, and it is looking like the price could be going up 10-25% on most of our poultry and livestock products if these regulations continue to be brought to pass and enforced.  Unless, you want to buy cheaper eggs from Mexico, where the standards are way lower and not nearly as safe as what we already have, or your meat from Brazil.  Only thing is, why should we trust their farmers over ours—shouldn’t we trust our farmers to keep giving us the same healthy and great products that they have without overwhelming them, even putting them our of business to try to get them to produce at an even higher standard than is needed.  Just something to think about.

 Several articles about it and a study by the Soybean Checkoff:  http://www.agriculture.com/news/policy/imal-rules-raise-food-prices-study_4-ar22606

http://www.farms.com/news/the-cost-of-regulations-and-shrinking-herds-50123.aspx

(this one really details the issue and shows the major potential impacts of more regulations)

Government Regulations—What are they costing us?   And should they be??  Maybe we could turn regulations into research and really come to a system  that works better for all involved.