Jackson quoted in Press Herald article on bill to help farmers sell meat
The Portland Press Herald reported on a bill recently introduced by Sen. Angus King that aims to ease a shortage of commercial meat-processing facilities in Maine, allowing more farmers to sell in-demand local meats to customers. The legislation, however, faces opposition from large-scale processors who say it undermines food safety, according to the article. The bill would permit states to allow beef, pork, goat and lamb processed at facilities that don’t face the most rigorous state or federal inspections to be sold to consumers, restaurants, hotels and grocery stores, the article states. The bill addresses a significant roadblock that farmers face when trying to sell products locally, said Tori Jackson, an associate professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and author of a 2013 report stressing the need for more slaughterhouses. If custom slaughterhouses were permitted to process meat for consumption by the general public, more small farmers would likely try to sell their meat commercially, Jackson said. “Meat processors have been hitting their heads against the wall over this issue for a number of years,” she said. “In the circles that I travel, this issue comes up every day in some form.”