Categories
Food Tank RMDZ RMDZ News

Why The Right To Repair Agricultural Equipment is Crucial To Food Security

A version of this piece was featured in Food Tank’s newsletter, released weekly on Thursdays. To make sure it lands straight in your inbox and to be among the first to receive it, subscribe now by clicking here.

If your tractor breaks, it seems like a no-brainer that you should be allowed to fix it—right?

Not always. In fact, agriculture machinery manufacturers are making it difficult for farmers or independent repair shops to address issues with equipment. From proprietary tools and parts to specific software, corporations create these barriers in order to retain the exclusive ability to service equipment—and to make more money.

The right to repair movement is fighting to give consumers control over the products they own.

Despite having vast know-how, farmers may be physically barred from making repairs and improvements to their equipment. If a tractor breaks, a farmer might have to wait weeks or months to pay someone else to fix it—and all the while, they’re losing crops and losing money.

“We’re trying to maintain our consumer rights, which means we still have to be able to repair and modify our tractors just like dad, grandpa, and great-grandpa did years ago,” Kevin Kenney, a Nebraska right-to-repair advocate, told Food Tank.

And thanks to advocate groups including The Repair Association, the topic is gaining momentum. A recent op-ed in the Washington Post says the right to repair could be “the next big political movement.” Currently, right to repair legislation is being proposed or enacted in more than half of all U.S. state governments—in ways that have the potential to be widely bipartisan.

Most of the progress toward right-to-repair has involved consumer devices, but luckily, some states are expanding right-to-repair to farm equipment, too. Proposals in 28 states will require electronics companies to make tools, parts, and vital information available for either individuals or independent repair shops. In April, Colorado became the first state to pass legislation ensuring consumers can fix their own tractors, and a similar bill is moving through Vermont’s state government, too.

Opponents of right-to-repair legislation say it would jeopardize consumer safety if repairs weren’t limited to corporate-authorized service providers—and they argue that the bills would also violate intellectual property protections and expose trade secrets if companies shared information.

But this simply is not true. A 2021 report from the Federal Trade Commission analyzed both corporations’ and advocates’ claims and found “scant evidence to support manufacturers’ justifications for repair restrictions.”

“We are a whole generation away from when everything was capable of being modified, improved upon—‘on-farm ingenuity,’ we used to call it,” Kevin Kenney told Food Tank from Nebraska. “We’re trying to bring that back through the same way we lost it, and that’s through open-source software. That’s the only way that’s going to work.”

When companies block farmers from making immediate fixes to their own equipment that might be necessary to harvest crops, they’re not only putting farmers’ livelihoods at risk—they’re putting food security at risk.

And they may be jeopardizing the environment, too. From Kenney’s perspective, right-to-repair is a way for farmers to embrace urgent regenerative practices without having to wait for major industries to catch up.

“We certainly think we should have the ability to make our equipment better and more economical and more ecologically sound on the farm,” he told Food Tank. “And take advantage of more renewable energy sources on the farm.”

At its core, the right to repair is about who really holds the power in our agricultural system. Farmers are some of the smartest people I know, and the right to repair is critical to building a food system that honors the time-honored skills of producers.

Let’s talk about the right to repair in your community. If your state, province, city, or local government is considering legislation on the subject, you can make a difference by speaking up. Email me at [email protected], and let’s talk about how Food Tank can help amplify your voice.

Articles like the one you just read are made possible through the generosity of Food Tank members. Can we please count on you to be part of our growing movement? Become a member today by clicking here.

Photo courtesy of Dietmar Reichle, Unsplash

The post Why The Right To Repair Agricultural Equipment is Crucial To Food Security appeared first on Food Tank.

Categories
RMDZ RMDZ News Waste 360

Anaergia Signs Contract to Build State-of-the-Art Food Waste and Wastewater Sludge Co-Digestion Facility

BURLINGTON, Ontario –Anaergia Inc. (TSX: ANRG), today announced it will provide technologies that will enable Monterey One Water, the wastewater utility of northern Monterey County, California, to make renewable energy from food waste as well a
Categories
CalRecycle RMDZ RMDZ News

Mattress retailer penalized $68,916 for recycling violations

Office of Public Affairs For Immediate Release: August 16, 2022 News Release #2023-01 Media Contact: Melanie Turner 916-341-6763 | [email protected] SACRAMENTO – Los Angeles retailer 101 Design Furniture and Mattress faces $68,916 in penalties after failing to collect and submit consumer mattress recycling charges used to recycle old mattresses and reduce illegal dumping.

Source

Categories
Plastics Recycling Update RMDZ RMDZ News

Study: Recycling, reusing plastics pose chemical risk

Study: Recycling, reusing plastics pose chemical risk

A recent analysis by Switzerland-based Food Packaging Forum reviewed hundreds of scientific studies and concluded that recycled and reused food-contact plastics can accumulate and release chemicals of concern. 

Continue Reading

The post Study: Recycling, reusing plastics pose chemical risk appeared first on Plastics Recycling Update.

Categories
News Feeds RMDZ RMDZ News Waste Dive

California commission recommends a pause on SB 1383 organics law, industry disagrees

The Little Hoover Commission, a bipartisan group appointed by state officials, found that California is “poised to miss” its 2025 organic waste reduction targets. Companies such as Republic Services said it’s too late to turn back.

Categories
E-Scrap News RMDZ RMDZ News

Solar panel recycler expands with eye on glass

Solar panel recycler expands with eye on glass

Arizona-based solar panel recycler We Recycle Solar upgraded its equipment and increased its capacity. 

Continue Reading

The post Solar panel recycler expands with eye on glass appeared first on E-Scrap News.

Categories
News Feeds RMDZ RMDZ News Waste 360

UN Environmental Programme Addresses Global Efforts to End Plastic Pollution in New Report

The UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) recently released a report examining how global efforts can reduce plastic pollution 30 percent by 2040. The report’s goal is to foster negotiations that will shift the world’s economy from linear to circular through the elimination of plastic pollution.
Categories
RMDZ RMDZ News Waste Dive

Anaergia’s Rialto Bioenergy Facility files for bankruptcy, citing California organics implementation delays

Anaergia hopes to buy time to gain better access to feedstock and ramp up its largest facility. It cites ongoing delays associated with SB 1383 and Los Angeles commercial organics recycling enforcement.

Categories
RMDZ RMDZ News

Rachel Machi Wagoner of CalRecycle discusses the benefits of a circular economy in California • Sacramento News & Review

Timely reports from Sacramento News & Review writers on breaking news and big issues.

Source: Rachel Machi Wagoner of CalRecycle discusses the benefits of a circular economy in California • Sacramento News & Review

Categories
RMDZ RMDZ News

Q&A with Rachel Machi Wagoner of CalRecycle on the intricacies of SB 1383 • Sacramento News & Review

Timely reports from Sacramento News & Review writers on breaking news and big issues.

Source: Q&A with Rachel Machi Wagoner of CalRecycle on the intricacies of SB 1383 • Sacramento News & Review