Predictably the U.S. Court Of Appeals for the 9th Circuit rejected a meat industry trade group lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of California’s Proposition #12.

Adopted by a wide margin the law enacted by ballot in 2018 establishes housing standards for livestock and poultry with specific attention to calves, gestating sows and egg-producing hens in the State.  Proposition #12 also bans the sale of animal products in the state that were not derived from housing systems as approved for use in California.

Subsequent to the adoption of Proposition #2 in 2008 a number of lawsuits were filed challenging the right of California to impose housing standards on producers in other states and also on the grounds of impeding interstate commerce. The courts in all cases upheld the constitutionality of Proposition #2.

Any further litigation over Proposition #12 would be a waste of time and money. The egg-production industry has long since accepted alternatives to cage- housing for hens and is converting to aviaries and floor systems at considerable expense.