As political polarization grows, states are increasingly seeking to regulate beyond their borders. On Tuesday the Supreme Court will consider where to draw the line in a challenge (National Pork Producers Council v. Ross) to California farm-animal regulations that has far-reaching implications.
California voters in 2018 approved a ballot initiative that established minimum confinement standards for farm animals sold as meat in the state. The law effectively requires that adult female pigs be housed in large group pens even though nearly all hog farmers keep them in individual pens, in part to prevent disease from spreading.
About 99.9% of the nation’s pigs are born and raised outside California. The law is an attempt to regulate out-of-state farms, and it imposes costs on farmers that raise prices for consumers across the U.S. Slaughterhouses process hogs from different sources together, and there’s no practical way to separate pigs raised for consumers in California’s market.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member