Linn County, Oregon — On Tuesday December 12th, 2023, with the new authority passed by the Oregon legislature to reform factory farm regulation, the Linn County Board of Commissioners established a new rule that requires factory farms to be setback at least a mile from residential property lines. This new rule greatly restricts where large industrial animal feeding operations can be sited in the future, and is the latest in a string of victories following the passage of SB 85, the factory farm regulatory bill, during the 2023 legislative session.

Local community group Farmers Against Foster Farms has been organizing community members to fight back against three large poultry factory farms that were proposed in the county to supply Foster Farms. Originally, the county told them there was nothing they could do on the local level to oppose these facilities moving into their community. That all changed with the passage of SB 85, which gave counties the authority to require setbacks. Linn county is the first county to exercise this new power, in response to overwhelming support by residents. Many Linn County community members turned out to support SB 85, the factory farm bill, along with Stand Up to Factory Farms member organizations.

The Stand Up to Factory Farms coalition worked tirelessly for years to get legislators and regulators to rein in mega-sized factory farms, due to their air, climate, and water pollution, harm to small farmers, farm workers, and animals, and threats to community health. The coalition is excited to see the progress that has been possible since SB 85 became law just this year. Two proposed Foster Farms facility sites are up for sale, and the notorious Easterday Mega-dairy has permanently shut its doors. With the Linn County setbacks being added to this list of wins, 2023 has been an exciting time for our coalition. Stand Up to Factory Farms is celebrating the significant progress to protect our air, water, rural communities, and family farms and more is yet to come. This progress would not have been possible without the tireless work of the Farmers Against Foster Farms community group and the dedication of Linn County residents.

In response to this latest win, Stand Up to Factory Farms coalition manager and senior attorney with Center for Food Safety Amy Van Saun said, "This is an amazing victory for the farmers and community members of Linn County, and a shining example of what we can do when we work together to say 'No' to factory farms. We hope that people across the state and country take this example and work in solidarity to protect their own air, water, lands, and health.