Small Oregon dairies say new rules could shut them down
Twice a day, Waneva LaVelle brings her three miniature dairy goats into her barn for milking. The rest of the time they’re free to roam her 17-acre farm in Hubbard, in north Marion County.
LaVelle ends up with about two gallons of milk per day. She sells a quarter of that to regular customers who come to the farm, and uses the rest to make soaps and lotions, which she sells at nearby country stores.
“I am basically your small family farm,” LaVelle told the Statesman Journal.
But LaVelle fears a new interpretation of existing state rules may soon put her out of business.
Last year, the Oregon Department of Agriculture changed its definition of a confined animal feeding operation, or CAFO, to include small dairy operations like LaVelle’s. That means she and other small dairy operators soon will be subject to permitting regulations.
Even if animals spend most of their time outside, “all animals are technically confined during the milking process, whether in pens, lots or buildings,” ODA wrote in a January 2023 white paper on the issue.
ODA documents show the change came at the request of the Oregon dairy industry, which complained that small producers get an unfair financial advantage by not having to comply with the same rules as larger dairies.
The change means LaVelle soon will have to apply for a permit and renew it yearly, pay fees to the state, undergo regular ODA inspections, install wastewater drainage and holding systems, and keep meticulous records about how much manure her animals produce and where it ends up.
Full access print and digital subscriptions
Contact us
“I never thought my handful of goats would qualify as a CAFO,” LaVelle said, “It could be thousands of dollars to put in a system like that.”
On Jan. 24, LaVelle and three other small
Postal information
dairy farmers in Oregon filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court, asking a judge to stop ODA from enforcing the rule against small dairies.
“The state cannot saddle small dairies with needless regulations simply to please the big dairy industry,” said Ari Bargil, senior attorney for the