Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal: War Stories from the Local Food Front

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Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal: War Stories from the Local Food Front

4.13 of 5 stars 4.13 · rating details · 716 ratings · 111 reviews

Drawing upon 40 years' experience as an ecological farmer and marketer, Joel Salatin explains with humor and passion why Americans do not have the freedom to choose the food they purchase and eat. From child labor regulations to food inspection, bureaucrats provide themselves sole discretion over what food is available in the local marketplace. Their system favors industri...more

Paperback, 338 pages

Published September 17th 2007 by Polyface

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Apr 16, 2008 Kelda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: permaculture

Joel, you are right but you are nuts and I need to take breaks when reading your book to get the righteous 'tone' out of my head. Since talking to you in person went so badly, my only wish is this: May your daughter become a feminist, recognize oppression everywhere, and bring that also to your dinner table. Yeah, sometimes it sucks to be a farmer, but you've got to figure out a system to help those whose lives suck even more. I only bring this up because you do, you white male, privileged enoug...more

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Jun 02, 2008 Erin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

Okay, ignore the racism, misogyny, xenophobia, etc, and this is a really good book. The ideas pertaining strictly to agriculture are wonderful. If I could rewrite it to get rid of the former list of issues, it would be my bible. As such, the notes I took will have to do.

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Sep 23, 2008 Jeremy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who eats.

This book offers fascinating insights into the processes involved in modern food creation, how this has changed, and why. It makes a very strong argument for the need to preserve (or bring back) local farms, pointing out the fallacy of the legislation that currently makes this so difficult. While I can't claim to agree with all of the author's view points (he talks about much more than just food and farming in the book), I fully agree with his philosophy that we should openly discuss our beliefs...more

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Apr 29, 2009 Amy rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: people who watch "The 700 Club" for entertainment purposes

Small-time farmer takes on big-city bureaucrats. This guy is a kook! Fascinating! It's in the spirit of the Humanure Handbook and Countryside Magazine with some Focus On The Family stuff thrown in. A little disturbing; wildly entertaining.

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Feb 10, 2009 Kathy rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a book that would make Robert Heinlein rolled over in his grave, yet he would completely agree with it. It is a book to make me, the mildly rebellious anti-authority person I am, become a raving Libertarian. It also will make you think twice, if not three times, before you buy meat at the grocery store again.
The author of this book is a farmer in Virginia. He is trying to run a small farm and sell the products from his farm. Most of the things he wants to do, sell eggs, fresh chicken and...more This is a book that would make Robert Heinlein rolled over in his grave, yet he would completely agree with it. It is a book to make me, the mildly rebellious anti-authority person I am, become a raving Libertarian. It also will make you think twice, if not three times, before you buy meat at the grocery store again.
The author of this book is a farmer in Virginia. He is trying to run a small farm and sell the products from his farm. Most of the things he wants to do, sell eggs, fresh chicken and other meat, raw milk, are, in one way or another, illegal. The laws that in theory were set up to "protect" are just promoting the industrialization of food production. This month, with a mass hysteria over peanut products, we can see how safe the industry is. Unfortunately the result will be more regulation, resulting in more centralization and more areas where a large company can ignore the regulators and small ones can't get in at all.
The best part of this book is that the author is not writing a theoretical tract. He is no animal rights activist who has never seen animals in the wild, he is not a professor, years from getting mud on his shoes, he is a farmer first. He has become an activist only because of the years of fighting the system.
While the details of how ridiculous the regulations involving the production of food were, the parts of the book that really got to me were the places he discusses the ideology behind the regulations. For example:

One of my icons, Wendell Berry, makes the excellent point in his classic The Unsettling of America that ultimately the rabid environmentalist and the rabid factory farmer are cut from the same cloth: they both idolize a landscape devoid of humans. Ultimately they both hate people. . . Asked to supply a picture of the ideal landscape, neither group will include humans in the portrait.

Or this point,

As these types of laws proliferate, all of us find fewer and fewer spots of autonomy left. Being able to make self-directed decisions is critical for expressing our humanness. Not that any individual expression is okay. . . but these basic moral codes are a far cry from the kind of micro-behavioural codes emanating from today's politicians. The Romans had a saying that the better the government, the fewer the laws.

or this one,

Teddy Roosevelt used to say that nothing in government happens by accident. There is always an agenda. And especially today, the agenda usually involves more power and money to large corporate and bureaucratic interests with a parallel disempowering and impoverishing of smaller public and private entities.

I especially like that last paragraph, as he neatly skewers both the Left and the Right. This is a man who has thought deeply about our political process and the practical applications of it. All he wants to do is feed his neighbors and his family, the government will not allow it. While I think that a part of his problem is living in the East, even in the West more kneejerk reaction laws are passed every year. If I had a lot of money, I would buy this book for every person I know, as it is, get this from the library and read it, remember it when election time comes around and every time you have to deal with any sort of government bureaucracy.
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Jan 24, 2009 Erica rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: farming-gardening

A fantastic tirade on bureaucracy and its systematic attempt to eradicate small business. I completely feel for Joel Salatin.

My parents have had many similar experiences working with various cities, counties and state agencies on trying to build houses (they are general contractors). Of course, its Paul Allen who gets tax breaks and zoning variances, but if my parents want to build affordable housing, heaven forbid, lets pile on the fees! (Then people wonder why housing in the Seattle area is s...more

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Aug 15, 2011 Woowoo rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a great book for understanding the struggles that true believers of sustainable farming are up against. It is a detailed account of the bureaucratic red-tape family farmers need to navigate in order to make a living and do so in an environmentally sensitive, small business model, high quality product manner.

Salatin makes it easy to understand his point of view by walking the reader through several scenarios that he's experienced firsthand. Salatin's observations, whatever the politics of...more

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Jul 27, 2012 K. A. Jordan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, philosophy, new-agriculture

Since I got involved with the local Farmer's Market (I raise chickens, mostly for eggs) I started to notice many of the regulations Joel speaks about so passionately. It does appear that the deck is stacked against 'the little guy' and Salatin can give better examples than I thought possible.

The demand for local food is growing - and even though farmers are frustrated with regulations - things are getting better a little bit at a time. I can see progress in just 3 years.

Salatin is not a 'knee-j...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Gord rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-politics

I'm sorry, Joel. I couldn't finish this. Heck, I could barely get into it.

This actually IS a good primer on the war in the countryside that's being waged between local producers and government. If you can get past the tone: Joel alternates between teacher, preachy and screechy.

Make no mistake: there IS a war being fought over food production and the deck is stacked in favour of large producers, feed lot cattle, battery cage chickens and massive hog operations. You'd think that properly cared for...more

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Jun 13, 2011 Heidi rated it 3 of 5 stars

This author is at the forefront of the food wars, and to sum up his book -- if I want to raise beef, butcher them at a table out back, and sell them to my neighbors who are perfectly aware of the entire process and the end product turns out cleaner than what you buy in the store, why should the government care? He makes many great points, but the overall feel of his attitude in the book is "I'm right, everyone else is wrong, and you're all idiots if you don't agree with me." In person he might n...more

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Apr 13, 2013 Karin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: farmers, farm-animals, farming, business, government, law, essays, nonfiction, sustainability, organic-farming, borrowed-from-the-library, politics

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. After reading this I am INCENSED that the government makes it so incredibly difficult for the small farmer to reach out to his/her customers in any way that makes it possible for him/her to make an actual living. Joel Salatin is quite outspoken on this subject, and as you read through his war stories (true accounts of the battles he and his cohorts have faced as farmers who are trying to make a difference and keep their products local and environmentally responsible), you, too may find yourself...more

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Dec 05, 2012 Jessica rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 5-star, farming

Joel Salatin is my hero. In Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal he recounts personal stories about some of the struggles he's had with the "food police", anyone from the USDA to local state-level inspectors, etc. Anyone who thinks smaller-scale farmers have it easier needs to read this book. The most amazing thing to me is that Polyface Farm is still going strong despite all the obstacles the Salatin family has had to constantly overcome! To sum up everything Joel Salatin has to say in this book...more Joel Salatin is my hero. In Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal he recounts personal stories about some of the struggles he's had with the "food police", anyone from the USDA to local state-level inspectors, etc. Anyone who thinks smaller-scale farmers have it easier needs to read this book. The most amazing thing to me is that Polyface Farm is still going strong despite all the obstacles the Salatin family has had to constantly overcome! To sum up everything Joel Salatin has to say in this book "...all of us need to keep our chins up and keep on keeping on. I hope these stories from my heart to yours have taught, entertained, and stirred you to never take dinner for granted." (p. 342)

Some (of the many) quotes I particularly liked:

"On every side, our paternalistic culture is tightening the noose around those of us who just want to opt out of the system. And it is the freedom to opt out that differentiates tyrannical and free societies. How a culture deals with its misfits reveals its strength." (p. 9)

"Indeed, this is still evidenced by the organic movement, that asked for government certification. People like me prophesied that when the government controlled the movement, the little guys would be squeezed out, the standards would gradually be adulterated until organic meant nothing, and it would simply be a way for multinational globalists to hijack organics." (p. 23)

This is an official response from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in reference to a proposed dairy amendment, "For individuals to make a choice implies that they have some basic knowledge on which to base a decision. The Department believes that the average consumer does not possess the basic knowledge to be able to determine if milk and dairy products are safe." (p. 75) - basically this person is saying consumers are too stupid to make any decisions about food for themselves!

"The point is that we can't know whether unregulated community food systems have negative consequences until we try. We know what the track record is of a regulated, centralized food system, and it's dismal. Not just in direct illness, but in general food nutritional quality, taste, and texture. Not to mention pollution and rural economic and social devastation. Isn't it about time to allow an alternative just to see what would happen?...All I'm suggesting is that for those who want to exercise their autonomy, to exercise their op-out freedom, some way should be made for that to happen. And when an alternative, parallel system is allowed to exist, our culture is richer as a result." (p. 249)

In relation to the avian flu "'We're federal veterinarians from the USDA and we're here to take blood samples of your poultry,' said the man in the sedan with blue government plates...The veterinarians said they wanted to take blood samples to check for avian flu. I responded emphatically, 'You are not welcome here. You may not exit the car. You are trespassing and I demand that you leave immediately.' They backed out of the yard, turned around, and left...I fully expected them to return Monday morning with a warrant, but they never did come back. Which is one reason why I encourage people being harassed by these bureaucrats to not be cowed into compliance." (p. 264-5)

"During the [avian flu] outbreak, two of the federal vets came to visit us during their time off. They were not in any official capacity; they just wanted to see the farm that they'd heard about or read about. I was glad to have them. One came one week and the other came the following week. They did not know each other because they were from different parts of the country. But each of them said the same thing: 'Every one of us knows that the reason for the outbreak is too many birds in too tight living quarters in too many houses in too close a geographic proximity. But if any of us breathes a word of that publicly, we will be fired within 24 hours.' Now how does that make you feel about government protection? About the USDA scientists being the repository of food safety?" (p. 268)

From an attorney who represented one of the largest food businesses in the world, "When NAIS [National Animal Indentification System] came up, he said he would put it to me straight, 'People don't trust the large corporations. If you're a large corporation, you need that trust to survive. How do you get that trust? You create a system that makes it look like you care. People want to see you doing something that protects them. That is how NAIS came to be. But, and here's the other part of the equation, if you're the chief executive of a large business, you don't want to pay for it. Instead, you wine and dine politicians to convince them that they will curry favor with their constituents if they demand this program. Now you have people's faith without having to pay for it.'" (p. 294)
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Jul 29, 2011 Jason Yang rated it 3 of 5 stars

I purchased this book directly from Polyface Farms after going on one of their free monthly tours of the farm and I swear I could almost hear Joel Salatin's voice as I read his book. His narrative was hilarious - full of contempt for government bureaucracy and stories of USDA/regulatory nonsense.

Joel takes some pretty aggressive positions for his quest for responsible, local farming, which I can understand, but not all of which I agree with. Still, it was a really insightful experience to unders...more

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Jun 18, 2010 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars

This thoroughly enjoyable book is at once humorous and infuriating. Humorous because of Joel’s genuine, down-to-earth writing style that just makes you chuckle throughout. Infuriating because of the jumble of insane bureaucracy he reveals.

Joel can be pretty far out with some of his political views, but that adds to the appeal of the book. Joel defines authentic — he lets it all hang out, doesn’t mince words, and states things plainly.

Whether you agree with him or not, he’s a likable guy whose th...more

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Oct 16, 2009 David rated it 4 of 5 stars

Great book. Salatin is so funny and his stories about confronting and circumventing the anti-local food regulators are great. The local food movement is such an important movement in our country. This book chronicles the impact regulation has on small farms and local economies. In addition to pure libertarian arguments of free-choice and governmental non-interference, Salatin also shows practically how regulation is detrimental to the nation's local economies and overall public health. To Salati...more

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Aug 24, 2009 Lj rated it 5 of 5 stars

Salatin is a "beyond organic" farmer, to use his own words. He writes about the struggles and triumphs of being an independent farmer in America, with some particulars relating to his state of Virginia. He shares his frustrations with bureaucracy and how the food system stifles the production of local, high quality, safe food. He writes on a myriad of topics related to a farmer, but it is very relatable by anyone who has aspirations to change the food system/culture in this country as well as be...more

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Mar 16, 2010 John rated it 4 of 5 stars

With a title like Everything I Want to Do is Illegal you might expect that Joel Salatin wants to do things that others might find morally questionable, or certainly well outside the norm. And while the latter, at least, might be true in a sense, that in and of itself is a sad commentary on our country, because all Salatin wants to do is to raise and sell to his customers what he believes (and many satisfied customers will agree) is the best animals and animal products in the world, and he wants...more With a title like Everything I Want to Do is Illegal you might expect that Joel Salatin wants to do things that others might find morally questionable, or certainly well outside the norm. And while the latter, at least, might be true in a sense, that in and of itself is a sad commentary on our country, because all Salatin wants to do is to raise and sell to his customers what he believes (and many satisfied customers will agree) is the best animals and animal products in the world, and he wants to do so in a way that is truly sustainable for the environment and economically viable (both for his family and for his customers) on the small-ish scale at which his family farm operates. Really--is that so much to ask?

I'd previously read three of Salatin's books on farming (You Can Farm, Pastured Poultry Profits, and Salad Bar Beef) in which he offers a how-to approach to farming that is sustainable, profitable, and healthy for consumers, animals, and farmers. This is something a bit different, as the subtitle suggests: "War Stories from the Local Food Front." This is a book about the many legal and bureaucratic barriers to implementing the kind of positive vision for agriculture that Salatin has laid down in his other books and has been developing and practicing for decades.

I remember recently hearing a political analyst discussing the ways that populism expresses itself from each party, with the Republican party appealing to people's fear of the government while Democratic populism appeals to people's fear of big businesses. Salatin would, I think, tell you that they're both right (and that neither really does much to protect us from the folks they claim to). It's probably not surprising that we should fear both government and large corporations since they're usually working hand in hand anyway.

One central thread running through the book are regulations that make it difficult for small farms to remain viable as local food providers. In some cases, the issue is with the regulations themselves, which make it difficult in some cases and impossible in others to legally provide people with good, safe, high-quality local food. Often, this is because the regulations are written in such a way that they favor the large producers and make it so that small producers cannot compete. Under the auspices of food safety, small producers are forced out despite having safer and more humanely-raised (not to mention arguably healthier) food. Very often, when pushed, the regulations break down into absurdity... which doesn't stop them from being enforced. And the other problem is enforcement, which tends to be arbitrary in the extreme. He tells of one regulator who came by, looked at his operation and said it looked good. When he retired, a new regulator came in and tried to fine/"fix"/shutdown, even though nothing had changed about the way Salatin was doing business.

His book also touches on why we should be skeptical of the science supporting the industrial food production model. In the first place, the studies being done at our land-grant universities (which, by such an association, might seem very credible) are frequently funded by the big corporate players in the food business. As a result, the methodologies are frequently flawed by too narrow of an approach, comparing the latest GMO plant variety to what amounts to neglectful farming and showing--surprise!--that the GMO plant does better than not doing anything. Or, as I'd heard about before in another context, comparing conventional methods against "organic" in ways that make an organic straw-man to compete against. Two test plots are taken, which for years have been used as testing grounds for non-organic fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, etc, and one is declared the organic test plot while the other is used for the industrial agricultural model. Can you see, already, the problem? "Organic" production isn't a one-year method--it's a cultural practice that builds a soil's fertility, that builds its water-holding capacity, that builds the health of the soil's structure and the living organisms contained in it. How can it compete in a "controlled" study like this against a system that's designed to make destroyed soil just good enough for the growing season and then leave it destroyed again? A related problem is that very often the people implementing studies are specialists in a particular area and, as a result, only think in terms of their particular area, whereas Salatin and other people working on these issues "on the ground" are taking a more holistic approach, one which considers the whole landscape of the farm and the possibilities inherent in it.

Salatin also takes issue with zoning laws, labor laws, laws about home-building and housing people, insurance laws and the insurance companies who profit from them, and taxes as well. Salatin is a Libertarian in the truest sense of the word, as opposed to the sort of corporate libertarians who tend to be libertarians when it comes to rewards, socialists when it comes to risks, and totalitarians when it comes to gaining advantages for themselves (that's my formulation, btw, not Salatin's). As a true libertarian, some of Salatin's objections in these various cases are philosophical in the first place, as he sees them infringing on what he believes should be basic rights of citizens, but each area also speaks to the ability of the small-scale farmer to remain viable.

But when it comes right down to it, Salatin isn't hoping for changes in policy simply to "prop up" the small farmer. To the contrary, he believes that small farms that are acting in the best interests of the farmer, the animals, the community, and the quality of their product can more than compete with the Tysons and Con-Agras of the world which, by contrast, are the ones who are actually being propped up right now by the regulatory and subsidy climate of our country.

Toward the end of the book, he looks to "The Future" at such issues as Avian Influenza, Mad Cow, bioterrorism, the animal welfare movement, and the proposed National Animal Identification System. The common thread is that many of the measures intended (sometimes genuinely, sometimes apparently more cynically) to keep us safer or to make farm production more humane in fact do little to address their stated ends and, as often as not, make us less safe while discriminating against small producers.

Thoughout, Salatin draws upon compelling personal experiences to illustrate his positions. It's compelling reading in its own right, and tends to engender some combination of outrage and hopelessness. Well, not hopelessness, exactly, because clearly Salatin and some others around the country have been finding ways to make it work, but it's pretty depressing to see the forces arrayed against good agriculture. Besides, as difficult as it may be to fight this fight, hopelessness won't help, and as bad as the situation is, Salatin doesn't believe that it is hopeless, though it is outrageous. (less)

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Jan 09, 2011 Raechelle Thomas rated it 4 of 5 stars

Just finished this book; it's an excellent read-very well written. He does get a bit repetive on a few points, and refers to the bible a couple of times-but not in an over the top fashion. There are a couple of points that I don't particularly agree with, but the overall message I fully am on the same page with him and that is that over regulation is simply helping the big corporations of industrial and factory farming and pushing out the true local, small, sustainable farmer.

As an example, I th...more

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May 31, 2012 Ryan rated it 5 of 5 stars

One of the cool things about Local Food issues is that it really resonates for almost anyone, regardless of their political leanings. This book more than any other I've read so clearly puts into perspective the how and why good intentions to fix many of the nasty byproducts of food producers do more to punish those who are doing actual good than just "following compliance". This is especially directed to those of the political left who are some of the strongest forces for the promotion of Local...more

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May 09, 2010 Ruth rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-and-cooking

If you don't know who Joel Salatin is, he is the all-natural, very opinionated Virginia farmer that was interviewed in the documentary Food Inc. He is quite the libertarian and does not shy away from sharing his political views on nearly every topic under the sun, food related or not. The book could have used another round of editing - it repeats itself and there are grammar issues.

But despite all of that, I'm really glad I read this book. Joel explains how the U.S. food industry is set up to b...more

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Oct 30, 2009 John Caneday rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009

Joel Salatin is a small farmer who has found a niche providing a unique product--meat uninfected by the industrial food system. In this book he compiles a list of complaints on how the government works to undermine his efforts, and the efforts of like-minded small farmers.

The government's various agencies work in collusion with industrial farmers to push out the small, independent farmer and leave the American diet to industrialized food and all its undernourished animals, contaminated meat, and...more

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Mar 17, 2009 Jenny rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who wants a reason to avoid the supermarket

This book is very informative about the current problems in the food production industry and the problems small farmers have fighting the government as they try to produce actually healthy food. Some of the content is down right disgusting and makes me want to never buy store food again. However, the author goes off on a LOT of tangents and after a while I got tired of it, he could have presented his story without all of the ranting. By the last few chapters I just started scanning. Overall I di...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book brings to light the bureaucratic struggles that the average farmer must endure to bring fresh and local food to their community. Unfortunately most regulations are put in place to try and force small producer out. Most people would consider their choice of food a personal decision. Everyone should really think about where they are spending their money and what kind of business practices you are enabling. (PS I do have very different views on some subjects that Salatin commented on thou...more

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Sep 09, 2009 Christina rated it 5 of 5 stars

It's nice to see that someone gets as annoyed as I do that our government spends an insane amount of time, effort and energy to solve problems that shouldn't even exist in the first place. Salatin does have some ideas I think are nutty tangents (like suggesting that we have an illegal alien problem due to abortion) but I'm sure he would insist that all his points are connected. No matter what your political persuasion or belief system, I guarantee he will offend you at some point in the book, bu...more

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May 10, 2013 Natlukens rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: cooking-farming-etc

I finished it finally!

Ugh. There was a lot in this book about the food industry and other things that I didn't know previously. I had never heard the term "manure lagoon" before. I wasn't even aware of the practice. I didn't know that the cows that become the beef that is on most grocery store shelves are fed chicken poop and even chicken carcasses on a regular basis (and the USDA is ok with it and even encourages it). I'm not a vegetarian, but by choice I don't eat meat often so I probably was...more

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Jul 25, 2012 Natalie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-politics

I loved this book. To sum it up, this book is a bunch of stories of what Joel has gone through to sell his super healthy farm fresh products to the willing consumer. Ever wondered why you can't just buy "LOCAL" in the grocery store? Well, read this and you will find out why. If a small-farm wants to sell their products they have to jump through about 1,000 hoops.

If you have time to read just one chapter, read the one about eggs. In the US, eggs must be washed. But did you know that a hen puts a...more

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Jun 15, 2011 Claudia rated it 4 of 5 stars

I think his time in the high school Debate Team paid off. Salatin is eloquent, intelligent, passionate and a little crazy. I like him a lot. He also sheds some light and raises some extremely insightful points on the world of farming, the term "Organic" and several other things related to farming such as government regulations, and psychological habits...I enjoyed learning more about sustainable farming, composting and such, but I also enjoyed his perceptive ability to understand the mind games...more

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Nov 30, 2010 Myrnie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-and-gardening

An interesting read, and he makes some valid points about the difficulties of running a small farm in the current regulatory culture. He takes more personal satisfaction than perhaps appropriate at lambasting government employees who are enforcing the rules to the best of their ability (i.e. not turning a blind eye and letting him do whatever he wants) but still, he makes good points that it hardly seems fair that the rules are at times so vague that a change in personnel can mean the law is int...more

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Jan 23, 2011 Dree rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-reads, food, memoir-biography-autobiography

So, 2/3 of the way through this book I lost it to the library queue, and finally got it back.

Basically, Joel Salatin is a nut. I believe he would not necessarily argue with that. He's all over the place, hates Democrats, hates Repulicans, is a homeschooler and hates school systems, is a rabid Christian who thinks people have a responsibility to treat the Earth well (rather than use it up "because God gave it to us"),hates big business, hates environmentalists, hates illegal immigrants (though I...more So, 2/3 of the way through this book I lost it to the library queue, and finally got it back.

Basically, Joel Salatin is a nut. I believe he would not necessarily argue with that. He's all over the place, hates Democrats, hates Repulicans, is a homeschooler and hates school systems, is a rabid Christian who thinks people have a responsibility to treat the Earth well (rather than use it up "because God gave it to us"),hates big business, hates environmentalists, hates illegal immigrants (though I think he really hates those who hire them, enticing them to come), hates inspectors, hates hates hates. Who doesn't he hate? Domestic animals, farmers, small businesspeople, and people who want to buy his product.

Following his train of thought can be a bit confusing given his tangents. This book is part general rant, and part chronicle of his experiences trying to sell organic, locally raised food locally. Of trying to run a small farm with as few outside inputs as possible--fertilizer comes from his chicken truck and ponds, and so forth. Traditional, pre-industrial, heavy-workload farming. He deals with inspectors and regulations made to "protect" the consumer from "dangerous conditions" at farms and facilities. But all these regulations do is encourage big business--and big business keeps getting more breaks. Tax breaks, and the removal of innovative practices from the marketplace.

Trying to purchase organic and locally raised food myself, I know so much of this is true. But Salatin has some false assumptions: 1) that farmers are better than other people, and somehow more deserving of actual tax breaks, etc, and 2) that every small business person has integrity and doesn't want to grow into a huge $$$ business (how does he think we got to this point? Conglomerates didn't just fall from the sky--they started small!). Just last year a TV station here in LA investigated some of the licensed "local growers" at farmers' markets--and they are not local growers at all. They buy stuff at the downtown flower/veggie market early in the am and then resell. Clearly, this licensing/permitting does nothing and means nothing--it's a scam.

He also does not recognize that these problems aren't just issues for small farmers. Any person trying to start a small business may run into them--zoning or CC&Rs keeping you from working in your own home, the "need" to use an industrial kitchen for those trying to start a cooking business of any kind, insurance, and so on and so forth. These regulations have made it incredibly difficult for many people to build their dream. He does call out Republicans who claim to be for small business, but do everything they can to crush small businesses in favor of the big guys (and their lobbyists).

That said, there is a lot of food for thought in here. I agree with him that our country is a mess--rampant fear of everything is encouraged by the government to create more regulations to benefit those who already have the money and power. And the public eats it up, spending the day watching Fox "News" and getting more scared of even walking out their door.

I would truly love to hear his take on the government corn subsidies (which he touches on and thinks should be totally removed), which create so much extra virtually inedible corn, which is then turned into super-processed cheap "food", which is making Americans fat, and is being fed to poor kids around the country for free as part of the federal school lunch program. So the government is paying for that corn twice, and then a third time when those who eat it need health care under Medicare or kids' programs, or VA programs, or prescription drug programs.

*sigh*(less)

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Jun 10, 2013 Mike Moskos rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-book-list-already-sent, audible-com, audiobook, 2013-read

You'd have to read whole lot of books to get the volume of information Joel packs into this book--I know, I think I've read most of them. Get past what so many other reviewers' described as his rant, and you'll see he's years ahead of many other writers (including the eloquent Michael Pollan who is about 5 years behind Joel's thought, but is nonetheless an incredible read). No surprise of course, Joel and his family have been living this way for a long time. Like Will Allen, his farming practice...more

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About Joel Salatin

Joel is a nationally renowned speaker on organic farming and "relationship marketing." He is on a mission to develop emotionally, economically and environmentally enhanced agricultural enterprises, and facilitate their duplication around the world. Part of that goal is to produce the best food in the world.

Joel espouses an agricultural paradigm shift that sees plants and animals as partners rather...more

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Books by Joel Salatin

Folks, This Ain't Normal: A Farmer's Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World

You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Start and Succeed in a Farm Enterprise

Holy Cows and Hog Heaven: The Food Buyer's Guide to Farm Friendly Food

The Sheer Ecstasy of Being a Lunatic Farmer

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“How much evil throughout history could have been avoided had people exercised their moral acuity with convictional courage and said to the powers that be, 'No, I will not. This is wrong, and I don't care if you fire me, shoot me, pass me over for promotion, or call my mother, I will not participate in this unsavory activity.' Wouldn't world history be rewritten if just a few people had actually acted like individual free agents rather than mindless lemmings?” — 40 people liked it

“When faith in our freedom gives way to fear of our freedom, silencing the minority view becomes the operative protocol.” — 37 people liked it

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