Source: Chris Scott, MEATINGPLACE, 11/7/18


California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 12 in Tuesday’s mid-term election, establishing specific space requirements for farm animals raised for food.

It was the second time in a decade that voters in the Golden State passed a statewide animal welfare initiative.
More than 61 percent of voters approved establishing minimum space requirements for calves raised for veal (43 square feet of floor space per animal), breeding pigs (24 square feet) and egg-laying chickens (1 square foot). Proposition 12 also will ban the sale of veal, pork and eggs when the animals are confined in areas below the minimum space requirements when it becomes state law in 2020.

About 39 percent of California voters voted against Proposition 12, which succeeded Proposition 2, approved by voters in 2008. The earlier referendum called for farm animals to have enough room to stand, sit, turn around and extend their limbs, although exact square footage was not specified. It also did not cover a ban on the sale of veal, pork or eggs raised in confined spaces when it went into effect in 2015.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture and the California Department of Public Health will be responsible for implementing Proposition 12, which was backed by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). HSUS CEO Kitty Block called the California vote “groundbreaking for the welfare of animals and raises the bar … of what farm to table means in this country.”

Industry groups including the National Pork Producers Council and the Association of California Egg Farmers opposed Proposition 12, predicting it would lead to higher prices for food and create shortages of meat and eggs if enacted.

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.