Little Sprouts will not Compromise Quality --- period

With the celebrations floating around (and rightfully so) over the jackson county GMO ban settlement, we have receive a number of suggestions... to compromise.

We would like it to be officially known that we, Little Sprouts Farm, will not compromise quality of our products. Our commitment to you, our customer, stands firm that we will do everything in our power to maintain the highest standard of health and quality possible.

Even in light of the court accepted settlement which means Jackson county will be GMO free... in almost a decade. Yes, it could take as long as 8 years to rid our county of the GMOs already planted here.

In light of this, and to not dampen the "celebrations" of the ordinance remaining strong through the settlement, some have suggested that Little Sprouts can continue business as usual with a GMO alfalfa field within feeding distance to our farm. The controls put into place  give a very low chance that any contamination could take place (assuming they are followed).  But... as one customer put it "Little sprouts would be only a little GMO".

Well we are not.  If there is even a small chance that the honey could contain GMO pollen, we will not produce it.  That is our commitment to you, and our business model.  So, the bottom line is.. my farm has been the sacrifice in this settlement. I have to give up producing honey, because of my commitment to quality, for 5 to 8 years.  The time frame is not even under my control. The judge has given precedence to the GMO farm, and allowed them to choose when to replant their field... with apparently no regard for this farm and its business concerns.  We are forced to STOP our production of honey, so that they can continue their production of GMO alfalfa.

Hence, people suggesting that "just go ahead, all the other honey producers in that part of the valley are continuing"...  well I do not speak for them, and I do not know what their plans are... but we will not compromise.  So, because of our commitment to quality for our customers, we are forced out of the honey business on our land to support the gmo alfalfa business on a neighboring property.

This is why coexistence is not possible... It is not based on "if contamination happens"... it is based on the fact that quality must be compromised.  My business model of quality first is not compatible with GMO farming.  I have already suffered a financial and personal loss, whether contamination happens or not.

For the record, I do support the settlement. However, we need to be honest and open about the damage caused by this judge forced "coexistence" experiment.  It has already failed, because we lost an entire aspect of our farm, due directly to co-existence.

Bottom line - Little Sprouts will not, for the next several years, be producing honey products on our land.

I do not have a recommendation for where to purchase honey, other than to remind you that bees feed up to 10 miles from the hive, and are attracted to the largest color spot seen from the air.


More to come---