The passage of Proposition 12 by more than 60% of Californians is a historic milestone for animal welfare.
In what the Humane Society of the United States is calling an “incredible triumph over the factory farming lobby,” the passage of the transformational proposition builds on protections first passed by voters in 2008 to ensure that pigs, eggs, and calves, come from facilities that do not confine animals in tiny cages for their entire lives. The updated legislation will be implemented by September 1, 2019.
“California voters have sent a loud and clear message that they reject cruel cage confinement in the meat and egg industries,” Kitty Block, acting president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States said in a statement. “Thanks to the dedication of thousands of volunteers and coalition partners who made this victory happen, millions of veal calves, mother pigs and egg-laying hens will never know the misery of being locked in a tiny cage for the duration of their lives.”
A broad coalition of leading animal protection, environmental, food safety and sustainable farming organizations support what is being hailed as “the strongest farm animal protection law in the world,” along with more than 600 California veterinarians and veterinary clinics, over 100 California family farmers, and thousands of volunteers.
“Thanks to you, mother pigs in California will no longer be confined in cages so narrow they can’t turn around. Egg-laying hens will no longer be crammed into cruel cages, unable to spread their wings. Baby calves raised for veal will no longer be tethered at the neck in tiny crates for months on end. And pork, eggs, and veal from caged animals will no longer be sold in the state, affecting countless animals beyond California’s borders,” President of Mercy For Animals Leah Garcés concurred in an email sent to WAN. “In today’s political climate, this kind of agreement is unheard of. The message this sends is clear: Voters believe animal cruelty is wrong.”
As noted by the Humane Society, in addition to the successful campaign to pass Proposition 12, a dozen states now have laws cracking down on extreme confinement, and the biggest food retailers in the nation, including Walmart, Safeway, Costco, and hundreds of others who are requiring their meat and egg suppliers to eliminate cages.
WAN and it’s charity Peace 4 Animals, which advocates to end animal cruelty and confinement worldwide, is thrilled that stricter welfare standards for farm animals will be implemented in California. We hope that this important proposition will eventually be implemented throughout the United States and the rest of the world; and believe that one day they will have their freedom and not be killed for the consumption of humans.
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