I must admit that when I heard that a 2000-acre organic farm that had maintained its organic status for 18 years is being forced by the local government to spray pesticides on their crops, I was appalled, and a bit disbelieving. After all, what right do a few elected municipal officials have to destroy the food, the USDA certified organic statusand the livelihood of those running and working an organic farm? Sadly, it is the reality facing Azure Farms in Moro, Oregon. Officials of Sherman County are forcing the farm to spray noxious pesticides on their farm or be quarantined.

But Azure Farms is fighting back. Nathan Stelzer, the farms manager, is asking for public support against the countys requirements. He went to social media for help in spreading the message about their farms plight. He also asks that people phone Lauren, the courts administrative assistant, at 541-565-3416 to voice their concern over the countys policies. Sherman County may issue a court order requiring Azure Farms to spray Roundup and other toxic pesticides on the farm by as early as May 22 or to quarantine the farm while county officials spray the pesticides on the farm. The County is also threatening to place a lien on the farm to cover the costs of the chemicals and labor to spray the farm.

The safety over Monsantos Roundup and other glyphosate-based pesticides is questionable, with studies linking it to cancer. Recent reports have ghostwritten its own so-called independent research to suggest the pesticides are safe. Meanwhile the World Health Organizations International Agency for Research on Cancer, cites research linking glyphosate to non-Hodgkins lymphoma and declaring glyphosate a probable carcinogen.

According to wheat farmers in Sherman County, the weed problem has gotten progressively worse over the years, and the farmers blame Azure for not spraying its organic food crops. While it is easy for people to seek out someone to blame for the problems they face, it is a serious oversimplification of the situation to simply point the finger at the local organic farm, for a number of reasons.

First, weeds are part of a natural and healthy ecosystem. Farms and weeds like those in question (Morning Glory, Canada Thistle and Whitetop) have co-existed for centuries, if not millennia. They are found throughout North America, so how can the wheat farmers accurately identify Azure as the culprit in spreading them to the wheat farms? Second, if they are spraying their crops to keep weeds down then the pesticides should be resolving the problem. But, the reality is that the pesticides are CAUSING super-weeds in the same way that antibiotics are linked to the development of super bugs.

Pesticides like Roundup have been used in increasing amounts in an effort to combat weeds that the pesticides were supposed to eradicate. According to a study released in February 2016, and published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Sciences Europe, 18.9 billion pounds (8.6 billion kilograms) of glyphosate have been used globally to date. Additionally, the use of the herbicide has risen almost 15-fold since Roundup Ready genetically-engineered crops were introduced in 1996.

Third, the farmers insist that they dont cause chemicals to drift onto the organic farm so they dont want weed seeds from the organic farm on their territory. The reality about pesticides is that they drift in the air and in ground water, so this claim by the wheat farmers is simply not founded in fact. Fourth, forcing the organic farm to spray chemicals on their produce destroys their organic farm status and business and its related jobs, which total $6 million annually in payroll. I doubt that any chemical-based wheat farmers would want to be shut down, but this is exactly what they are trying to force on Azure by insisting that the farm spray noxious chemicals on its soil and crops. And, it is unlawful to destroy anothers livelihood when that livelihood isnt breaking any laws. Since when is growing food in the same way it has been grown for thousands of years a crime? Frankly, it seems completely tyrannical than the countys wheat farmers and municipal authorities think they have the right to force the farm to destroy its pristine soil and organic status.

Please sign my petition asking Sherman County to stop forcing Azure Farms to spray Roundup and other noxious pesticides on their organic farmland.

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Dr. Michelle Schoffro Cook, PhD, DNM is the publisher of the free e-news Worlds Healthiest News, president of PureFood BC, and an international best-selling and 20-time published book author whose works include: Be Your Own Herbalist: Essential Herbs for Health, Beauty & Cooking.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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County Officials Are Forcing This Organic Farm to Spray Roundup on Food Crops - Care2.com