Schlangen’s second trial ended with the jury finding him guilty of five charges: operating without a food handlers’ license; storing eggs at temperatures above the mandated 45 degrees; distributing adulterated or misbranded food; violating a food embargo; selling custom processed meat. The charges carried penalties of up to 15 months in jail and $5,000 in fines, but the prosecution chose to sentence him only on the first count. Schlangen was ordered to pay $1,000 in fines ($700 of which is suspended) and given a 90-day jail term (also suspended with one year probation). If Schlangen violates his sentence, he will be sent to jail and forced to pay the balance of $700 in fines.

Schlangen runs a private buying club, Freedom Farms Co-op, which provides its members with farm-fresh products including organic eggs and raw milk. Interestingly, just before the trial the prosecution decided to remove the specific charge of selling/distributing raw milk from the criminal complaint.

Raw milk advocates aren’t sure whether to view this trial’s outcome as a qualified loss or a measured victory. “Did we win? Is it a loss? I don’t know, you tell me,” says Nathan Hansen, Schlangen’s attorney.

Read more about the trial and its outcome here:

http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2013/08/19/567752/10045446/en/Minnesota-Jury-Convicts-Peaceful-Farmer-on-Five-Charges.html

The Campaign for Real Milk is a project of the nutrition education non-profit, The Weston A. Price Foundation. Donate to help fund research into the benefits of nutrient dense foods.  http://www.westonaprice.org/lab

The post Minnesota Farmer, Alvin Schlangen, Convicted in Second Trial appeared first on Real Milk.

Please broadcast

Criminal trial for peaceful farmer Alvin Schlangen

August 13-15, 2013

11:00 am

Stearns County Courthouse

St. Cloud, MN

Background:  The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA), through the efforts of compliance officer Jim Roettger, is successfully choking the main supplies of raw milk in Minnesota. In 2010 MDA shut down Traditional Foods of Minnesota, a private food club that was a primary food source for many families in Minnesota. Another farmer, Mike Hartmann, has been facing prosecution and harassment for years.

Alvin Schlangen has been charged criminally in two cases (in two counties) for distributing raw milk to his community. In 2012, he was acquitted on three criminal counts in Hennepin County; and still faces charges in Stearns County. This upcoming trial is MDA’s latest desperate tactic to not only sabotage the food supply of Minnesota families, and to jail a peaceful farmer for providing food to his neighbors, but also to send a message to Americans everywhere that their government will use whatever means necessary to deprive them of the foods of their choice.

Please join us as we stand in support of this brave man and for everyone who wants to choose the foods they put in their bodies. Raw milk is not a crime!

ACTIONS:

1. Attend the criminal trial of peaceful farmer Alvin Schlangen:

Stearns County Courthouse

725 Courthouse Square

St. Cloud, MN  56303 [map]

2. Donate to the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund to support Alvin and others like him at www.farmtoconsumer.org/donate

Additional info:

Facebook event:  https://www.facebook.com/events/573399589365972/

 David Gumpert Article about it:  It’s Deja Vu All Over Again for Alvin Schlangen, Facing Desperate MN Prosecutor

The Campaign for Real Milk is a project of the nutrition education non-profit, The Weston A. Price Foundation. Donate to help fund research into the benefits of nutrient dense foods.  http://www.westonaprice.org/lab

The post Call To Action For Alvin Schlangen Trial appeared first on Real Milk.

The riveting, weeklong trial of Vernon Hershberger, the Wisconsin farmer charged with four counts relating to selling raw milk and cheese, ended on May 25^th with the jury finding him not guilty on 3 of the 4 charges – giving raw milk advocates hope that public support for the legalization of unpasteurized dairy products is gaining momentum. 

Hershberger was declared innocent of producing milk without a license, selling milk and cheese products without a license, and operating a retail establishment without a license. He was found guilty of one count of breaking a holding order issued by the state in June 2010, which prohibited Hershberger from selling or distributing any of the food he produced without a license. Hershberger faces up to 1 year in prison and a maximum penalty of $10,000.

“The maximum penalty is still a small price to pay compared to the price of a guilty conscience because of letting good food spoil while families with small children are in need of it,” said Hershberger.

The not guilty verdict on the other three counts means that Hershberger can continue to sell raw milk and raw milk products to members of his buying club – ensuring that Wisconsin residents who rely on raw milk for health benefits have at least one way to get it.

Read The Wall Street Journal’s coverage of the trial, and watch a short clip here:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324125504578509453007615858.html

Read the full press release on Hershberger verdict here:

http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2013/05/28/550238/10034247/en/Jury-Finds-Peaceful-Farmer-Does-Not-Need-Licenses.html

Realmilk.com is a project of the nutrition education non-profit, The Weston A. Price Foundation.

The post Raw Milk Trial Ends in Victory for Food Rights appeared first on Real Milk.