A Landslide Defeat for Measure J

It’s being called a “landslide defeat” for Measure J in Sonoma County. I spoke with Shannon Douglass, California Farm Bureau Federation President about the measure that would have banned concentrated animal feeding operations in Sonoma County…

“In Sonoma County, about 80% of their dairies are organic and they’re pasture-based. So what’s really interesting is that it would have eliminated most of those dairies because, in the winter months when it is really wet, those animals do need to be brought into a confined setting.

She told me that also problematic was that the measure allowed for individuals to decide what they thought “confined” was.

“We’re just so thankful that the overall take-home was that, in Sonoma County, they do value their farmers and their farm families surrounding that community.

Shannon Douglass, California Farm Bureau.

Controversy on the measure was so high that a threatening email prompted the Sonoma County Farm Bureau — the initiative’s primary organizing opponent — to lock its office doors and examine other safety measures.