Atlanta
(2012-02-09)
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Dozens of people at the Luckie Food Lounge in downtown Atlanta watch a video produced by Georgians for Pasturized Poultry. The seven-group consortium hopes to change the standards for poultry farming in Georgia.
Jim Burress, WABE News
At its inaugral event in downtown Atlanta Thursday, members said they hope to bring attention to what they call "damage" done by factory poultry farms in Georgia.
One of those in attendance was Kerry Dunaway, a farmer in Crawford County. He drove 90 miles to be a part of the launch.
Dunaway says he wants to produce pasture-raised chicken, but recent regulatory changes have his hands tied.
He says the old rules don't apply, but the new rules haven't been established.
"We've basically been told, 'You can no longer drive a Ford, you can only drive a Chevrolet.' And when you ask, 'Where you can buy a Chevrolet? [the response we get is] Well, we're not making them yet.' So it's put a halt to small pasture poultry production in Georgia," says Dunaway.
Jennifer Owens, advocacy director for Georgia Organics, says the policy issue is just one piece of GPP's concerns.
"The other side of this is the free market piece," says Owens. "What folks really want is a choice. Right now you go into a grocery store and you don't really have a choice."
Other involved groups hope to address everything from workers' rights to environmental concerns.
The organization says its mission is to make Georgia the leading state in production and consumption of pasture-raised poultry.
© Copyright 2012, WABE
