Resource Library
Browse 100+ resources on food systems law and policy.
Heirs’ Property: Understanding the Legal Issues by State
Factsheets that aim to prevent the loss of land owned as heirs’ property in specific states. Each examines state laws that are relevant to heirs’ property owners, and outlines steps owners can take to resolve property issues before seeing an attorney.
Topic: Animal Agriculture, Resilience Audience: Community Organizations, Growers, Policymakers, ResearchersManaged Rotational Grazing Policies
This report explores how farm bill programs can be leveraged to encourage managed rotational grazing, a system of livestock management that is a more climate-friendly alternative to industrial forms of livestock production.
Topic: Business Practices Audience: Attorneys, GrowersA Working Guide to Current Use Taxation for Agricultural Lands
This guide examines current use policies and programs as a tool for farmland preservation, identifies common challenges and opportunities of these programs, and provides recommendations for how programs could be adapted to better preserve farmland.
Topic: Farmland Access, Healthy Food Access, Urban Agriculture Audience: Community Organizations, Growers, Policymakers, ResearchersGrowing Food Where You Live
This resource discusses the different legal obstacles to growing food for those who rent their home, lease the land they live on, or live in common interest communities, and provides examples of local laws that support growing food where you live.
Topic: Business Practices Audience: Attorneys, GrowersReorganizing a Farm Business with Chapter 12 of the Bankruptcy Code
This guide describes how reorganization through Chapter 12 of the Bankruptcy Code is a tool for farmers looking to restructure debt, change production models, or transition their farm to the next generation.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Processors & Distributors, Technical Assistance ProvidersUnderstanding FSMA’s Preventive Controls Rule
This guide discusses how the Food Safety Modernization Act Preventative Controls Rules impacts grain businesses, and empowers grain farmers, processors, and food manufacturers to understand and comply with federal food safety laws.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Community Organizations, Growers, Policymakers, Processors & Distributors, ResearchersFood Safety and Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule State Implementation Interactive Map
This interactive map illustrates the specifics of each state’s individual produce safety program and can be filtered by common questions about state implementation of the PSR, allowing for all states to be viewed side-by-side.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Technical Assistance ProvidersInteractions Between The FSMA PSR and Other Laws that May Apply to Produce Operations
This fact sheet discusses four federal laws that may overlap with the Food Safety and Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule: the Clean Water Act (and state regulation of nonpoint source pollution), the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, and guidelines from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Technical Assistance ProvidersFSMA PSR Implementation and State Laws
This fact sheet illustrates each state’s individual produce safety program by summarizing some of the information found on the Food Safety Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule State Implementation interactive map.
Topic: Other Audience: Growers, Policymakers, ResearchersDefining and Regulating Agritourism
This report provides a comparative analysis of state legislative approaches to agritourism from 2019-2020, including definitions of agritourism, and other areas of importance, such as liability, zoning, funding, taxation, and licensing.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Technical Assistance ProvidersProduce Safety Rule Inspections and Third-Party Audits
This fact sheet helps to distinguish between produce audits and the Food Safety Modernization Act’s Produce Safety Rule inspections and discusses how they may impact a producer’s liability.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Technical Assistance ProvidersFSMA PSR Coverage and Exemptions for Farms with Multiple Business Entities
This fact sheet describes how producers should determine whether the sales from multiple business entities count toward calculating a farm’s exemption status under the Produce Safety Rule. There may be situations where it is appropriate to consider sales from separate farm business entities separately.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Processors & Distributors, Technical Assistance ProvidersUnderstanding the Relationship Between FDA Rules, Guidance, and Other Communications
This fact sheet describes the process for establishing and changing the Food Safety Modernization Act’s Produce Safety Rule and explains the relative legal effect of FDA regulations, guidance, and other FDA communications, particularly those that come through the Technical Assistance Network and Produce Safety Network.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Processors & Distributors, Technical Assistance ProvidersUsing the FDA Technical Assistance Network and FOIA to Access Information About FSMA
The FDA Technical Assistance Network (TAN) is a resource for the food safety community that answers specific questions about Food Safety Modernization Act compliance. This fact sheet explores the considerations relevant to making the TAN responses available to the public.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Technical Assistance ProvidersAlternatives and Variances to the Produce Safety Rule
This fact sheet describes the Food Safety Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule provisions that an alternative or a variance would apply to, who is eligible to develop an alternative or variance, the approval process for both, and the high burden of supporting either an alternative or a variance with credible scientific and technical evidence.
Topic: Food Safety Audience: Growers, Technical Assistance ProvidersProduce Farms, Foodborne Illness, and Legal Liability
This fact sheet emphasizes that producers have long been subject to liability laws, outlines the nuance that Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) adds to that existing liability, and covers how compliance with FSMA can be helpful in the event of a lawsuit.
Topic: Business Practices Audience: Farmworkers, GrowersEmployment Law FAQ for Vermont Farmers and Farm Workers Related to COVID-19
This guide provides clarification for Vermont farmers and farmworkers on some of the most pressing questions raised by the COVID-19 pandemic, including paid sick leave, sick leave exemptions for small businesses, and unemployment insurance and compensation.
Topic: Animal Agriculture, Food Labels Audience: GrowersFarm Animal Welfare Certification Guide
This guide helps farmers and food producers understand what welfare-certified farming can look like—ultimately giving them the tools to sustain humane practices and greater transparency.