Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today called the amendment sponsored by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, “problematic” because “it will invite legal challenges” and “create problems in the marketplace.”

Vilsack added that he does not believe the conferees have taken up the issue yet, but that it is one of the farm bill provisions that the Obama administration has “some concerns about.”

The King amendment to the House version of the farm bill would forbid the states from banning the sale of a food produced in another state due to objections over the production methods used. It is aimed at a California law that would ban the sale of eggs that are produced under conditions that are not in line with a California law on the size of cages in which egg-laying hens should live.

Vilsack, who is traveling in California, made the statement in response to a question from a reporter during a news conference on an unrelated matter.