from inquisitr.com: Michigan
residents lost their “right to farm” this week thanks to a new ruling
by the Michigan Commission of Agriculture and Rural Development. Gail
Philburn of the Michigan Sierra Club told Michigan Live, the new changes
“effectively remove Right to Farm Act protection for many urban and
suburban backyard farmers raising small numbers of animals.” Backyard
and urban farming were previously protected by Michigan’s Right to Farm
Act. The Commission ruled that the Right to Farm Act protections no
longer apply to many homeowners who keep small numbers of livestock.

Kim White, who raises chickens and rabbits, said, “They don’t want us
little guys feeding ourselves. They want us to go all to the big farms.
They want to do away with small farms and I believe that is what’s
motivating it.” The ruling will allow local governments to arbitrarily
ban goats, chickens and beehives on any property where there are 13
homes within one eighth mile or a residence within 250 feet of the
property, according to Michigan Public Radio. The Right to Farm
Act was created in 1981 to protect farmers from the complaints of
people from the city who moved to the country and then attempted to make
it more urban with anti-farming ordinances. The new changes affect
residents of rural Michigan too. It is not simply an urban or suburban
concern.