LePage signs food sovereignty law, the first of its kind in the nation

Anne Weinberg of Chase Stream Farm in Monroe smiles next to some of the produce she was selling recently at the new United Farmers Market of Maine in Belfast. Thanks to recently enacted food sovereignty legislation, small producers like Weinberg will have an easier time selling their products locally. (Abigail Curtis | BDN)

With a stroke of his pen, Gov. Paul LePage last week enacted landmark legislation putting Maine in the forefront of the food sovereignty movement.

LePage signed LD 725, An Act to Recognize Local Control Regarding Food Systems, Friday legitimizing the authority of towns and communities to enact ordinances regulating local food distribution free from state regulatory control.

According to food sovereignty advocates, the law is the first of its kind in the country.

“This is a great day for rural economic development and the environmental and social wealth of rural communities,” said Rep. Craig Hickman, D-Winthrop. “The Governor has signed into law a first-in-the-nation piece of landmark legislation [and] the state of Maine will [now] recognize, at last, the right of municipalities to regulate local food systems as they see fit.”

The County is pleased to feature content from our sister company, Bangor Daily News. To read the rest of “LePage signs food sovereignty law, the first of its kind in the nation,” an article by contributing Bangor Daily News staff writer Julia Bayly, please follow this link to the BDN online.