University to Offer Legal Issues in Animal Agriculture Course

FAYETTEVILLE, AR – A new course, Legal Issues in Animal Agriculture, will be offered in the first summer session at the University of Arkansas, said Mike Looper, head of the animal science department in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences. The six-week summer session begins May 21.

"The course will focus on legal issues involved in the production of poultry, swine and livestock and may be of interest to some farmers and other professional people," Looper said. Information on enrolling in the course is available from the U of A admissions office at 479-575-5346.

Elizabeth Rumley, a staff attorney at the National Agricultural Law Center, will teach the course, which is for both undergraduate and graduate students.

Rumley's focus at the center is on the legal issues in animal agriculture. She conducts workshops and has written articles on the different topics within that focus. An index of articles is available on the National Agricultural Law Center Web site at http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/.

Animal agriculture legal issues include laws, regulations and policy arguments on animal confinement, antibiotic use, humane slaughter, veterinary medicine and "right to farm" laws, Rumley said.

Right to farm laws apply to disputes over perceived nuisances arising from agricultural operations. Such lawsuits are not uncommon in areas of urban sprawl when subdivisions are built in rural areas and affect animal agriculture predominately because of the noise and smells inherent in livestock and poultry production, Rumley said.