California’s Proposition 12 law is supposed to become effective on January 1, 2022, but the implementation of that law might be postponed, said Steve Meyer, economist with Partners for Production Agriculture.
Proposition 12, which was passed by a ballot initiative in California in 2018, will make it illegal for eggs from caged layer systems to be produced or sold in the state. It will also make it illegal for pork from farms that use gestation stalls or crates to be produced or sold in California.
Speaking during the March 22 session “Market Outlook for Meat & Poultry,” held during the 2021 Annual Meat Conference, Meyer said there is a collection of circumstances that might postpone the effective date for the law.
One factor is there is pending litigation against California regarding the law. Some states consider it unconstitutional for one state’s laws to dictate the agricultural production practices done in other states. The North American Meat Institute, a co-host of the Annual Meat Conference, has also challenged the law.
Also playing a factor is the fact that there are not enough resources to help the California Department of Food and Agriculture enforce the provisions of Proposition 12, Meyer said.
Finally, Meyer said, there is an effort to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom, which could also interfere with Proposition 12’s implementation.
During his presentation, Meyer only addressed Proposition 12’s potential impacts to the pork industry, but there are concerns about its impact on the egg industry. While many egg producers have been transitioning their operations to cage-free laying systems, there have been worries about the feasibility of meeting the demands set forth by California’s law, as well as similar laws passed in other states and purchase pledges by retailers, foodservice businesses and restaurants.
Chad Gregory, president of the United Egg Producers, said at an event in 2020 that the industry will need to have 225 million layers in cage-free systems to meet the cage-free egg demand by 2025, and that is is “financially and logistically impossible” to meet those timelines.
