I do assume that most did read the article. However, did you all the other legislations referenced in the bill like the "Poultry Products Inspection Act"? All these bills are intertwined with other legislation. The problem is that people will read the new bill and have no idea of what is being amended.
No exemption under subparagraph (1)(C) or (D) or subparagraph (2) shall apply to any poultry producer or other person who, in the current calendar year -
(A) slaughters or processes the products of more than 20,000 poultry; or
(B) slaughters or processes the products of poultry at a facility used for slaughtering or processing of the products of poultry by any other poultry producer or person. Notwithstanding clause (B), the Secretary may grant such exemption to any poultry producer or other person if the Secretary determines, upon application of such poultry producer or other person, that granting such exemption will not impair effectuating the purposes of this chapter.
So you're exempt if you raise and slaughter less than 20,000 birds a year, unless you also slaughter other peoples birds too. There is a list of other exemptions too, for home use, for religious reasons (kosher I assume).
Now lets look at the Egg Products Inspection Act which is also mentioned:
(a) Regulation for exemptions
The Secretary may, by regulation and under such conditions and procedures as he may prescribe, exempt from specific provisions of this chapter -
(1) the sale, transportation, possession, or use of eggs which contain no more restricted eggs than are allowed by the tolerance in the official standards of United States consumer grades for shell eggs;
(2) the processing of egg products at any plant where the facilities and operating procedures meet such sanitary standards as may be prescribed by the Secretary, and where the eggs received or used in the manufacture of egg products contain no more restricted eggs than are allowed by the official standards of United States consumer grades for shell eggs, and the egg products processed at such plant;
(3) the sale of eggs by any poultry producer from his own flocks directly to a household consumer exclusively for use by such consumer and members of his household and his nonpaying guests and employees, and the transportation, possession, and use of such eggs in accordance with this paragraph;
(4) the processing of egg products by any poultry producer from eggs of his own flocks' production for sale of such products directly to a household consumer exclusively for use by such consumer and members of his household and his nonpaying guests and employees, and the egg products so processed when handled in accordance with this paragraph;
(5) the sale of eggs by shell egg packers on his own premises directly to household consumers for use by such consumer and members of his household and his nonpaying guests and employees, and the transportation, possession, and use of such eggs in accordance with this paragraph;
(6) for such period of time (not to exceed two years) during the initiation of operations under this chapter as the Secretary determines that it is impracticable to provide inspection, the processing of egg products at any class of plants and the egg products processed at such plants; and
(7) the sale of eggs by any egg producer with an annual egg production from a flock of three thousand or less hens.
This entire section is untouched in the new legislation (just as exemptions are untouched in the poultry processing act). So unless you got more than 3000 layers you've got nothing to worry about. If you selling from your flock to the end consumer you've got nothing to worry about.
These bills aren't aimed at organic and small farms. They are amendments to other bills to keep greater track of the big agra businesses. These bills increase inspections on existing LARGE producers, increase standards on imported products, and increase the ability to track down pathogens from the large food production companies should an "outbreak" occur.
And if read the bills these bills amend then you'd realize also that the bills being amended in many cases are the bills that set the standards/definitions for the ability to use such words as "free-range" and "organic" on labels and in advertising which legitimatized the whole thing.
If anything these bills slightly increases the power of organic small farms and market farmers in that they have layers of red tape that they are exempt from. The big boys will be have a little more red tape (though if you read the req's for them, most of it stuff that they should have on file already) which although minimal, will increase their products production costs.
So really who didn't read the bills? Both the right wing and left wing have been all over this, and it's ridiculous, because neither side has done any of the homework. They just look at what the fines are and like most people don't look at the definition section of a bill, don't look at exemptions. Hell, most people don't even read the bill, let alone the other bills attached to them. Most people get their information from attention deprived bloggers, media blow hards, or political hacks that jump to wild conclusions or worse just copy and spout what is handed to them. Which is a shame, considering in this day and age one can read a bill in it's entirety with a simple google search and make up their own mind
FTW
