Maine Becomes Nation’s First State to Enshrine ‘Right to Food’ in State Constitution

By Kaeleigh Williams, 2L at St. Louis University School of Law

Last week, voters in Maine voted to add a “right to food” amendment to the state’s constitution. The amendment, which is the first of its kind in the United States, provides Mainers with a constitutional right to grow, harvest, and consume their own food, and it includes protections for rights to seed saving and seed sharing.  

The amendment was approved by the state legislature by a two-thirds vote earlier this year, but it needed approval from voters in order to become a constitutional amendment. It was approved by 60 percent of voters, according to Ballotpedia.  

Maine, a state with a bustling agricultural industry, has been at the forefront of the food sovereignty movement, which envisions a food system where producers also have control over how their goods are sold and distributed. The goal of the referendum was to ensure local communities have more control over their food supply, Heather Retberg wrote in the Maine Citizen’s Guide to the Referendum Election.  

As a constitutional amendment, the measure will preempt existing Maine laws and regulations, leaving them vulnerable to legal challenges. The Bangor Daily News editorial board, which opposed the bill, said the amendment “raises a host of questions about what this language would mean for existing laws and regulations spanning from food safety and animal welfare to environmental protection.” 

States such as Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and North Dakota have pressed similar legislation addressing food sovereignty, and advocates of the new amendment say it will open the door for more states to follow suit.