Source: Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 1/23/12

The Supreme Court has ruled that a state livestock slaughter law cannot preempt federal slaughter regulations.

The ruling makes the National Meat Association the victor in its fight against a 2008 California law that deemed non-ambulatory swine not subject to USDA inspection regulations. 

“We couldn’t be more pleased that the Supreme Court not only found in favor of our very clear and reasonable arguments, but that they did so unanimously,” NMA CEO Barry Carpenter said in a news release.

According to NMA, the court ruling stated that a 1967 clause in federal law “prevents a State from imposing any additional or different – even if non-conflicting – requirements that fall within the scope of the Act and concern a slaughterhouse’s facilities or operations. And at every turn [the California law] imposes additional or different requirements on swine slaughterhouses: It compels them to deal with nonambulatory pigs on their premises in ways that the federal Act and regulations do not.”

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