[Santa_Cruz_Permaculture] California Granges rebel - National Grange support industrial agribusiness, while in California the grange support family sustainable farming

[Wesley Roe and Santa Barbara Permaculture Network]

California Granges rebel - National Grange support industrial agribusiness, while in California the grange  support family sustainable farming 

5 Questions for Bob McFarland, California’s grange master
Thursday, October 10th, 2013 | Posted by Andrea Granahan | one response
The California State Grange Master, Bob McFarland, is in Sebastopol this week for the annual State Grange Convention. He was willing to discuss what is happening on the national level with the venerable agricultural organization.

Is the National Grange suing the California Grange?
Yes. The National Grange Master Ed Lutrell tried to kick me out, but the California Grange membership that had elected me refused to do so. Then Lutrell revoked California’s 143-year-old charter and tried to seize the bank accounts, offices and other assets, but a court injunction stopped him. So he is suing us, and the trial will come up in late spring I think.

Why would Lutrell do that?
He supports industrial agribusiness, while in California we support family sustainable farming. We took a stand against GMOs and he favors it, saying there is no difference. He has done the same thing to the Wyoming State Grange, revoked their charter and tried to seize their assets.

Under your leadership the granges are enjoying a renaissance. You would think he’d support that.
It’s ironic. Lutrell was in charge of membership for a number of years, and during that time membership continued to decline. In California, since I was elected in 2009, for the first time in 30 years membership increased. We have approximately 4,400 more new members. We now have 8,700 grangers.

How did you do that?
I act on the will of the members. When I first took office ,the average age of a granger was 65. Right now it is 45, and we are listening to them. This year there were moms’ parades. Grange mothers organized 170 parades to protest GMOs in their foods.

When does Lutrell’s tenure expire?
He is up for re-election in November. We can’t vote, neither can Wyoming because he revoked the charters. It’s very sad. The grange is a grassroots fraternal organization, and that means brotherhood. Instead he is acting like he is a king and we are his peasants. I can only hope that under new leadership some day we can be reunited with our brethren.

http://sebastopol.towns.pressdemocrat.com/2013/10/news/bob-mcfarland-california-state-grange-master-californias-rebel-granges/