When Kristin Canty was advised to try raw milk to cure her son’s allergies and asthma, she had tried more traditional methods, including steroids, that hadn’t worked and she was at the end of her rope. Even so, she didn’t just go visit the farmer who produced the raw milk, nor did she just insist on seeing the cows it came from, she wanted to see the farmer’s children. They were healthy and soon, so was her son. When I spoke to her on September 23, 2011, the first thing I wanted to ask her was if this would, as she claims, be her only film. And then we went on to what prompted an aspiring restauranteur to make a film about the small farm movement, and the government agencies that do little to foster, and much to discourage, small family farms, including using SWAT teams for third-degree misdemeanors, and knowingly confiscating certified healthy animals for reasons that have nothing to do with preventing the spread of disease.
FARMAGEDDON examines the government regulations that place obstacles in the way of small farmers, and the troubling tactics taken by government officials when enforcing them. Canty’s interest in the small farm movement began when she was advised to feed raw milk to her son to help with his allergies and asthma. It worked, but Canty discovered that raw milk is not available to everyone who would like to drink it, and the reasons for that are what prompted her to investigate a government system that uses SWAT teams to make inspections, and draconian regulations that put people out of business for reasons that evaporate with the demand for proof of the allegations. This is Canty’s first, and she says, only film.
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