Court upholds California egg measure
February 05, 2015 |04:08 PM
A federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld the constitutionality of Proposition 2, the California ballot measure banning the confinement of egg-laying hens, breeding pigs and veal calves in small cages.
The decision reaffirms a lower court decision in 2012, which rejected a challenge to the law by egg farmer William Cramer.
In upholding the measure, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit concluded that the requirements of Proposition 2 “can be readily discerned using objective criteria” and that “a person of reasonable intelligence can determine the dimensions of an appropriate confinement that will comply with Proposition 2,” the Humane Society of the United States noted in a news release.
“We are thrilled that the court sided with the millions of California voters who supported this measure and chose to end extreme and reckless factory farming practices,” said Jonathan Lovvorn, HSUS senior vice president and chief counsel for animal protection litigation said in the release.
“Proposition 2 is a simple, basic animal welfare and food safety standard that is easy to understand and we urge egg producers who have not already done so to convert to cage-free production systems as the surest way to comply with the law.”
▪ U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit — Memorandum on Appeal
▪ Associated Press — Court dismisses 3rd lawsuit against hen cage law
The decision reaffirms a lower court decision in 2012, which rejected a challenge to the law by egg farmer William Cramer.
In upholding the measure, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit concluded that the requirements of Proposition 2 “can be readily discerned using objective criteria” and that “a person of reasonable intelligence can determine the dimensions of an appropriate confinement that will comply with Proposition 2,” the Humane Society of the United States noted in a news release.
“We are thrilled that the court sided with the millions of California voters who supported this measure and chose to end extreme and reckless factory farming practices,” said Jonathan Lovvorn, HSUS senior vice president and chief counsel for animal protection litigation said in the release.
“Proposition 2 is a simple, basic animal welfare and food safety standard that is easy to understand and we urge egg producers who have not already done so to convert to cage-free production systems as the surest way to comply with the law.”
▪ U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit — Memorandum on Appeal
▪ Associated Press — Court dismisses 3rd lawsuit against hen cage law
