Mich right to farm act-I need some basic info

Every district has a U.S.D.A. Compliance Agent, contact your local U.S.D.A. office and request a consultation, it is free and they are very helpful.

Under the Federal "Right To Farm" Act, you still need to comply with city, county and state laws and regulations. This act primarily protects the farmer/rancher from the liability of nuisance, smell, noise etc.. relating from a legal farming/ranching operation.

The U.S.D.A. does not generally inspect small family farms, operating under any of the federal exemptions, however, you can request a compliance agent to come and perform a free compliance evaluation.

www.usda.gov
www.fsis.usda.gov
http://askfsis.custhelp.com/

mcrich -

I am in Holland, too, and would be happy to help if I can. I was wondering, do you know how you got their attention for 3 chickens in the first place, especially if you have contacted all your neighbors and they are fine with it? (Very curious because we have 5 hens, soon to be 10, and while I know are neighbors are all okay with it, I don't know if it is actually legal. I was kind of assuming if your neighbors were fine with it, then it would not come to the attention of anyone else.)

I was also going to suggest calling Destiny Farm, you can find their website here, and I know they went through a struggle themselves and invite anyone who needs help to please call or e-mail them. Their website leaves something to be desired, but you should be able to find contact information at least. I would suggest calling first, because I have not gotten an e-mail back from them even though it is about ordering chickens from them. They are self-proclaimed "not computer people".

Pertaining specifically to you, on their website they state:

• [FONT=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]There is no law that states the size of a farm. The supreme court of Michigan says that a farm is any place that commercially produces a product useful to humans. This means if you have a chicken and you sell, or try to sell, the eggs that chicken lays, you are a Farm.[/FONT]
• [FONT=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]Everyone, Everywhere in Michigan has a right to Farm. This is your state Law but city hall won't tell you about it. I had this Battle and have learned so much about our right to grow, raise and share Any and All thing Beneficial to humans.[/FONT]

[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]Now, I can't say whether or not their statements are absolutely true, but I can say that they have had personal experience with the [/FONT]system and won. They should be able to point you in the right direction if they cannot specifically help you.

By the way, what kind of chickens have you got?

I am currently in a battle with Holland Township. I was featured on WZZM News tonight and would love any help anyone can offer. My chickens are on Agricultural land, I have 26 chickens, and 3 turkeys. I'm currently following all GAAMPs but the township wants to shut me down. They are stating that I can not sell eggs from my property, but if I sell eggs and follow all the GAAMPs I am considered a farm which would allow me to have a roadside stand selling farm goods. We raise eggs and veggies on our property and sell them.

http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/215217/14/Chicken-operation-violates-ordinance

Hi Jason -

There are lots of folks in Michigan this summer facing a similar situation; 2012 does seem to be the year of the chicken in Michigan.

There are many threads started by different people in different cities (PM me if you want a list of the ones I know about), but the biggest thread is here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...o-farm-law-what-does-it-mean/620#post_9157225

Best of luck.