Reclaiming our Food - Food Sovereignty + the Right to Food in Maine — Heather Retburg

Heather Retberg is a farmer at Quill's End Farm in Penobscot, Maine, which she stewards together with her family. At Quill's End, the farming philosophy is simple: "All Flesh is Grass. All Grass is Soil." Additionally, she has served as a lead advocate for food sovereignty in Maine to protect legal space for traditional foodways and to ensure the right to food. She co-authored and advocated for local ordinances to ensure food sovereignty and food freedom that have now been adopted by 20% of Maine's municipalities. She co-authored, advocated for, and organized toward the passage of the Maine Food Sovereignty Act, which recognizes local control over food exchanges enacted by Maine's legislature in 2017. Together with Senator Craig Hickman, she co-authored Maine's constitutional amendment, now Article 25 of Maine's Declaration of Rights, enshrining the right to food in the first state constitution in the country. She worked for 6 years towards its passage in the state legislature and was the principal officer of the Right to Food for Maine campaign when it went to Maine’s ballot in 2021. She has worked intensively with her local and state Granges toward collaboratively rebuilding agriculture infrastructure and cultural, historical knowledge about food and farming. She serves on the board of Food for Maine's Future and is the principal organizer of Local Food RULES, which promotes a revolution in thinking and action about who should control our local food systems.