Maine’s agriculture commissioner has called on the federal government to loosen the rules about the interstate shipping of meat during the coronavirus pandemic.
Amanda Beal, the head of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Program should temporarily lift restrictions that prevent state-inspected meat from being sold or donated across state lines.
She said that would “smooth out bottlenecks in the local food chain, reduce the need to cull healthy livestock and poultry and support our food-insecure during this extremely difficult time.”
She said processing facilities in the state are facing pressure to meet demand.
The state is confident state-inspected facilities can keep up with needed oversight if the waiver is granted.
A request for comment was left with the USDA press office.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login to participate in the conversation. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.
-
News
New Sharon man who shot and killed his partner, most likely related to another man who killed his own wife
-
Crime
Police arrest 18-year-old in reported Lisbon stabbing
-
News
Topsham high school closed due to COVID-19 outbreak
-
Maine
Report shows significant lack of quality child care in rural Maine communities
-
Maine
Maine CDC reports 462 new COVID-19 cases, 4 additional deaths